CSOs, govts need to work together to ensure overall progress of society: Rajnath

Defence minister Rajnath Singh has called for enhanced synergy between Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and state governments to ensure the overall progress of society.

Addressing the Civil 20 (C20) India Summit in Jaipur on Saturday, Singh said that the advantages of the CSOs and traditional government structures need to be harnessed to achieve the goal of holistic development.

“While the government apparatus is more rigidly structured and institutionalised and the initiatives broadly represent the ideas of a substantial majority, the CSOs have fluid structures that provide a greater scope for new ideas and practices to play out in the society,” Singh said.

In modern state structures, the governments cannot act in a hasty manner on novel and untested ideas, but the CSOs have plenty of scope as they operate in a bottom-up approach and are more responsive towards the ever-shifting ground realities, he said, adding that the CSOs can act as force-multipliers for the governments.

The defence minister emphasised that these groups have the potential to impact official policies and programmes, across all the dimensions of today’s social, economic and environmental challenges.

“At a broader level, it can be asserted that a robust and enlightened civil society is essential for a functioning democracy, as it enables the citizens to engage in deliberative dialogues and cooperative efforts, outside the adversarial arena of electoral politics, towards achieving the national objectives,” he said.

Singh, while emphasising the importance of the state governments and CSOs working hand-in-hand, said, “Many of the government’s landmark initiatives such as Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Abhiyan etc., which have brought significant transformational and attitudinal changes in the society, were complemented by the herculean efforts made by various CSOs in these fields.”

“C20 can accommodate unique ideas from diverse sections of society. The flexible and inclusive approach of the C20 forum can both learn from and teach the G20 forum leading to further improvement in the implementation of the policy-making,” he added.

The C20, launched in 2013 as an official G20 Engagement Group, provides a platform for the CSOs to bring forth non-governmental perspectives on the issues being taken up by the official G20. It gives them a forum to reflect on the primary & common concerns affecting the world and promote social & economic development.