Improved governance, inclusive growth, an accountable system and a clean and green Gurgaon are top of the agenda for the majority of NGOs, Activists and responsible corporates who have come to constitute a fairly enlightened civil society in the Millennium City. In fact the spirit of activism, and the strong interventions undertaken by some responsible individuals and organisations, has provided a fillip to the dream of 'achhe din' for all citizens of Gurgaon. Friday Gurgaon organised a seminar, 'Together We Can' - Partners-in-Progress: Towards making Gurgaon a Model City, last Saturday, to celebrate the activist spirit of the City and bring together various stakeholders - to discuss the way forward. It was also our Third Anniversary celebration day. An important objective was to identify a couple of actionable civic/social outcomes for which action plans could be executed over the next 6 months, through an apt fusion of knowledge and resources. Prabhat Agarwal, founder of Aravalli Scholars, who has been working for a long time on issues related to the people of Sikanderpur Village, asserted that the time had come to ensure that migrants, and especially workers of all kinds living in the ‘urban’ villages of Gurgaon for years, were ‘recognised’ as locals by the State, and given their civic and social rights (like Aadhar cards, Voter ID cards) and State benefits applicable for the underprivileged. He said that there is a huge population in the City that has been ‘conveniently’ excluded from any official record and therefore governance. “The total number of registered voters in a Gurgaon village is max. 10 to 15 thousand, who are ‘original’ inhabitants, while the people residing there are in multiples of that figure. He wanted the forum to find a way(s) to help these people, who are getting no help from any State institution or ‘scheme’. It was agreed that a letter would be sent to the Deputy Commissioner, asking for these migrants to be given their rights, and that Friday Gurgaon would publish a feature on their status. Harinder Dhingra, senior RTI activist, said that while the migrants are welcome in the City, there was also need to identify the illegal residents (like many who have allegedly come from Bangladesh). He lamented that while hundreds of these migrants had been identified, only a few could be ‘deported’, due to alleged lax police action. The issue of affordable healthcare in Gurgaon, where the cost of medicare is skyrocketing, was tabled with concern. The role of private hospitals, especially those that have been given land at subsidised rates from the government, was also critically analysed by the participants. Odette Katrak, an activist, pointed out that despite assurances by private hospitals, no health facilities are being accorded to the poor and weaker sections in the City, despite the government rule that stipulates ‘10 per cent free beds and free medicine’ for the poor. Katrak asserted that an ambiguity in government rules regarding the domicile of the beneficiaries is being used as an excuse by large private hospitals to avoid helping the marginalised. Harinder Dhingra, who had filed an RTI on this and got an order from the State Information Commission, informed the participants that the order makes it very clear to private hospitals that they need to share information about the patients who have availed their healthcare facilities. “They have to help the poor and needy by providing them free healthcare as stipulated by law,” he said. He would provide a copy of the order to Friday Gurgaon, to inform the public at large. Gauri Sareen, an activist who has formed the Gurgaon Action Plan, revealed that she has presented a holistic healthcare plan and presented it to the Union Health Minister. If all civic and social forces can come together and join this initiative for the expansion of health services and its affordability, it will help in turning around the situation, she asserted. The issue of housing for the Economically Weaker Sections, and even the lower middle class, which is finding it difficult to find a roof over its head, was also raised. The participants agreed that there is a need to seek written clarity on the policy for the allotment of EWS housing at the level of the district administration, and then demand action accordingly.
Ruchika Sethi, who has been working on recycling and a malba-free Gurgaon, said that the citizens needed to adopt a more holistic lifestyle, which would help reduce the waste produced in the City at source. She strongly called for the segregation of waste into three categories, and said that only non-recyclable waste should reach the landfill. She is running a citizen campaign – ‘Why waste your Waste? Amina Shervani, an activist who runs an industry in Manesar, was of the opinion that waste recycling as well as sewage treatment should be localised, and the need is for the government to ask both the builders as well as HUDA to set up ‘mini-plants’ for this purpose across colonies and sectors. She added that the failure of Sewage Treatment Plants run by the government, and particularly the one run by HSIIDC in Manesar, had caused untold sufferings to the local villagers. “While the problems are universal, the need is find local solutions,” she asserted. Gurgaon-based activist Harish Capoor said that, to reduce the waste burden and ensure a cleaner and greener city, the citizens would also need to reform – by becoming more civic minded. They should desist from committing any kind of nuisance in public areas – like littering and spitting. The civic authorities should enforce the penal provisions provided in the Municipal Act on the culprits. Civil society bodies like Clean Gurgaon (of which Capoor is a key member) are ready to assist in such initiatives. Renowned lawyer Jyoti Sagar raised the issue of the huge amount of EDC that has been, and is being, ‘collected’ by TCP/HUDA, but which either has been spent on projects outside Gurgaon or has remained unspent while the City has been left to fend on its own to meet the ever-growing deficiencies in civic facilities and services. Sagar asserted that firstly HUDA was merely a contractor, and not some important State governance body, and it had not done much to develop the infrastructure required for a fast growing city. Commenting on this issue, Editor FG opined that whenever the administration or the government is confronted on the lack of adequate facilities, the stock reply is that Gurgaon developed too fast…and they still seem to be playing ‘catch up’.
There was a separate time scheduled for a discussion on a Gurgaon Manifesto, which some participants believed should be given to each candidate contesting the upcoming Assembly elections. Specifically, their ‘charter of demands’ was as follows:
- All government functions of the City must come under the functional, administrative and financial control of the MCG
- Elected representatives (Mayor & Councillors) must be empowered; in fact Mayor should be the Head of MCG.
- Gurgaon must get its ‘fair’ share of funds
- Ward Committees should be set up, with suitable representation and participation from residents, as required under Article 2435 of the Constitution.
FG had also prepared a manifesto, which had the above as a base, and also included ‘specific areas’ of concern (from daily civic issues to the planning of the new sectors to ‘disaster’ management) – see Editorial.
Nisha Singh, MCG Councillor, was of the opinion that there is need to empower the MCG and delegate powers to the Gurgaon Mayor and elected councillors, so that they could function as per the role envisaged in the 74th amendment to the Constitution. The issue of reforms in urban governance, and particularly of empowering the MCG, evoked the maximum reactions from the participants. Latika Thukral, City-based activist, who is a key member of IamGurgaon, said that there needs to be a system by which the policies of the urban local bodies related to development, maintenance and sustainability are not impacted by the individual whims and fancies of ‘officers’. “If an officer ‘likes’ an initiative, he will pursue it for some time, and then just drop it; or anyway the person who replaces him will drop it, and start something new. This is a costly exercise and a mockery of governance. The priorities of the civic agencies in Gurgaon need to have uniformity of thought, purpose and action,” she asserted. One of the participants also mentioned that there is need for the City administrators to be delegated more power, so that much goal setting and decision making can take place locally. Right now almost every decision is taken by bureaucrats sitting in the State capital, who have no knowledge of the ground situation and also no ‘sympathy’ with the City (in fact they feel that Gurgaonites are ‘pampered’), he added. Bhawani Shanker Tripathy, of Mission Gurgaon Development, who also distributed a paper on how to transform the City, said that local governance has to be made more participatory and accountable. He added that the existing physical assets needed to be operated and maintained in a better manner. He opined that unfortunately the govt. seems to look at activists and civil society as a threat; they should rather see them as a dependable and concerned resource, which can assist them in the development planning of the City. Shubhra Puri of Gurgaon First stated that a ‘citizen charter’ and an agreed common manifesto for the City would be a great starting point to hold the local administration and politicians accountable. Vinita Singh from We The People, a Gurgaon-based NGO that actively works with citizens, was of the view that substantial improvements in governance are possible if the people own up to their responsibilities as citizens – by being concerned, better informed and joining the action. “From our experience of working closely with citizens from various backgrounds, we understand that three factors come in the way of them taking ownership and responsibility – information (what), tools (how) and beliefs (why),” she said. She said that all citizens should be open to being informed/trained on governance (constitutional rights, duties and structure of the State) and tools for citizen action (complaints, the RTI Act), and be willing to enquire into their own beliefs. With Gurgaon having more than one lakh women employed in different sectors, the need for having a more safe and secure city was felt strongly. The participants said that better streetlighting, more public spaces (where people can always be seen), and a constant vigil by the police would help improve the confidence of people, especially on the road(s). A better citywide public transport system would also help in safeguarding the interests of the women, industrial workers as well as corporates.
The alarming fall in the ground water levels, and the lack of adequate water, was an issue that charged up the Seminar, and all the participants impressed on the need for better management of this resource in terms of treatment, usage and recycling, and on how to prevent its wastage. There was a strong felt need for the development of a comprehensive plan for ensuring water security for Gurgaon residents. Vivek Kamboj of Hariyali, an NGO, suggested that all traditional water bodies - natural lakes and ponds - need to be revived, to act as rainwater harvesting structures and to ensure natural drainage. Shervani said that small, localised water treatment plants may be a good option for providing potable water in a cost effective manner. Tripathy of Mission Gurgaon Development said that most of the existing master water pipelines cannot handle the higher output and pressure that is planned, and should be replaced, as leakage and damage is leading to wastage and water outage for hours. Harish Capoor also suggested that there should be a mandatory installation of water meters at all premises (domestic, commercial and industrial), and all consumers should be charged as per their consumption - as done for electricity. He also wanted the government to have a re-look on the need to have/add golf courses in this water-starved City. Dr. Sarvesh Naidu, Executive Director of Pathways World School, said that they have undertaken various social and green projects in and around Gurgaon, and would be most willing to share information and knowledge on these, as well as participate in the joint endeavours being planned.
The participants were unanimous in their view that all stakeholders in Gurgaon need to come together and work towards creating some time-bound action plans that would help alleviate some basic civic and social issues that impact many residents of this City. They also opined that instead of a ‘wish-list’, there was need to create a ‘to-do list’. Nitin Seth, CEO Fidelity, who also co-chairs the NASSCOM Haryana chapter, made a strong case for the development of Gurgaon as a world-class hub of talent, innovation and entrepreneurship. Seth said that Gurgaon needed a modified/new growth engine. The government must build the public infrastructure and engage with local industry, to make this City a great place to live in and work in. “We at NASSCOM are working towards pushing for more entrepreneurship, and for generating local talent, from within Haryana,” said Seth. The need for better educational institutions, and an environment that supports entrepreneurship, was also underlined by him. Summing up, Atul Sobti, Editor, Friday Gurgaon said that there is a clear need for better governance in the City, and for that civil society members have to unite and work well among themselves and with the Administration. It’s time for like and right-minded civil society to come together on some important civic and social agendas for the betterment of the City – the opportunities and the promise that this City holds are well worth the effort. It’s time for everyone to Act Local. Friday Gurgaon, as always, is most happy to be the message and the messenger, the facilitator and the catalyst (and also the monitor!) for the citizens of Gurgaon.
The participants felt that there is need for forging a more direct connect with the Administration. "We have issues and ideas, but donít know where to go in the administrative setup. We need to know who and what makes/will make the system work," said a participant. FG will provide this.
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