Editorial: Effective Vigilance & Monitoring

The Lok Sabha MP chaired a meeting of the District Level Vigilance and Monitoring Committee Meeting (DLVMC) in Gangtok on Tuesday. This was part of a series of such meetings which have been reported on over the past month. The concept of vigilance & monitoring committees from the GPU level onwards up to the district level is a brilliant concept, which, if implemented earnestly and freed from bureaucratic control, can take Sikkim to new levels of planning from the grassroots up. Because the information sharing works up in stages from the GPU to the Zilla and the State level, stocktaking and course corrections become possible in quicker time. The initiative is not new, but the energy with which it is being pursued appears fresh. Sikkim has already been recognised at the national level for the effectiveness of its decentralisation process and as more powers and responsibilities pass on to the panchayati raj institutions, the monitoring of projects and programmes bankrolled by them becomes important. The State Government had begun the process of devolving powers in a more planned manner with the institution of BDOs across the State, and after some initial hiccups, the BACs have found their rhythm and are delivering well. It can be safely vouched that policy intentions have seldom been misplaced in Sikkim. Yet, the scale of development in the rural areas leaves a lot to be desired because there was no effective monitoring and evaluation. The shoring up of the vigilance and monitoring committees with regular attendance of higher profile office bearers and elected representatives is thus welcome. This complements the wider devolution of powers to the panchayats and should guarantee more immediate results.
The basic problem with “overall” development is that those involved in the micro projects [at the village or even BAC level] lose focus of the larger picture. They get confused on what exactly success of the project at hand contributes to “overall” development of the State. Because the deliverers of these developmental projects answer to offices distant from their areas of operation, even those at the village level who wanted to complain could not do so because they were too distant from the corridors of power. As more projects get sanctioned by the panchayats and as the Monitoring Cells become more effective, the accountability factor too will increase. This, not only because the office of authority and the people are based in the same place, but also because the elected members [panchayats and through them the MLAs and now also the MP] will be forced to pay more heed to the aspirations and objections of the people who should become more vocal once the platform to voice their woes is made more accessible. The elected leaders will know how they will fare in the next elections not through how many complaints are voiced in their constituencies, but how quickly and effectively these complaints are redressed. That will be instant justice delivered by a democratic set up. That should be the goal that every vigilance and monitoring committee at every level should aim for.