Citizens and governance: civil society in the new millennium

This study captures the hopes and aspirations, concerns and needs of ordinary Indian citizens throughout the country. It had the following three basic questions: 1. What is your view of a 'good society'? To what extent does such a society exist today? 2. In such a 'good society', what roles are best played by citizens and what roles are best played by state institutions and other sectors? 3. What would enable citizens to play their roles more effectively in the development of such a society in the future? More than 2000 ordinary citizens who normally remain invisible shared their opinions and perceptions. 19 clusters from different regions of the country were included in the study. First the questions were posed to ordinary citizens in each cluster, and then their responses were taken to citizen leaders of the same cluster. Their combined opinions were shared with citizens in positions of authority to do something about the concerns of ordinary citizens. The story told in this report, in narrative form, presents opinions of citizens about their needs and the manner in which they would like those needs to be addressed. Citizen's voices expect to participate in determining their own future in an on-going and sustained manner. These voices can provide ideas to policy makers, public leaders and development workers about how to strengthen different aspects of governance, so as to enable citizens to address their concerns in a sustainable manner. The study concludes by summarizing the elements of a good society, and provides some recommendations to help activists create a bridge between citizens and the state.