Karnataka State of Governance 2020 review shows up that the state is doing well in the Health segment and using digital technology effectively across administrative categories. Generally speaking, Karnataka’s 2020 performance reveals that the state has functioned consistently, retaining its position across most categories. The state continues to do reasonably well in the Governance, e-Governance, Infrastructure and Transport niches.
Karnataka moves down from #8 in 2019 to #10 in the overall ranking in our annual State of Governance review. Karnataka has performed tremendously in the Health category, moving from #9 in 2019 to #2 in 2020.
| Top Gainers | ||
| 2020 | 2019 | |
| Health | 2 | 9 |
| Infrastructure | 1 | 2 |
| Municipal Sanitation | 5 | – |
| Transport | 2 | 3 |
The Department Of Health & Family Welfare Services, Government Of Karnataka, has done exemplary work in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The immunisation program inoculated children and pregnant women against life-threatening preventable diseases to mitigate manageable threats during the pandemic. Keeping up the delivery of essential healthcare services to vulnerable populations has indeed proven instrumental to curtailing the devastating effects of the pandemic.
The general health services under the Ayushman Bharat – Arogya Karnataka scheme worked on both Covid and non-Covid concerns. The main goal was to prevent a disruption of healthcare services at the district level. To this end, the authorities invested in infrastructural, equipment and resource development. This helped expand coverage for medical expenses under existing schemes. As a result, citizens do not have to worry about extravagant out-of-pocket spending at a time of national crisis.
Large-scale construction and development projects have been some of the worst-affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. But the show must go on. Infrastructural growth and responsible development are indeed some of the most reliable markers of a prosperous society. Hence, the Karnataka State Police Housing & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited has launched the Fast Track Construction Technologies – Precast Construction Of 128 Pc Quarters Development Project.
Prefabricated/ precast construction allows for the production of largescale structures at reduced rates. Firstly, standardised elements are built offsite. These are then transported to the construction site in specialised vehicles. After that, they are assembled using dedicated lifting equipment and cranes. This project is the first precast building in the government sector and therefore holds great potential for revitalisaing the construction industry.
The project incorporates sustainability and environment-friendly principles in construction. To this end, the corporation adopted several green practices like rainwater harvesting, solar water heaters and swapping 30% of the cement with GGBS. The prefab construction process also involves less labour and produces less waste. This is due to a controlled, mass-production system in an industrial setting intended for optimising resources. The project certainly has potential for replication across the country. And so, we can look forward to more cost-effective industrial and infrastructural growth and largescale employment. Additionally, we can prioritise environmentally-responsible development at the national level.
The Hubballi-Dharwad Bus Rapid Trasit System Company Limited has launched the Hubballi-Dharwad Bus Rapid Trasit System. The goal is to promote sustainable and environment-friendly principles in the Transport sector. After all, sustainable development is quickly becoming a priority for many state governments. And the GoK initiated the HDBRTS to guarantee safe, comfortable, dependable and rapid transport to citizens. The idea is often referred to as ‘Metro on Road’ because of its affordable, sustainable and commuter-friendly nature.
The Government of Karnataka worked in conjunction with the Government of India and the World Bank. The established the BRT system between Hubballi and Dharwad with a view to induce long-term economic growth and infrastructural stability in the region.
The BRT extends 22.5KM of which 11.5KM is a divided, dedicated 4-lane BRT and 7.10KM is combined, dedicated 3-lane BRT and 3.65KM is non-dedicated BRT. Given that Hubballi-Dharwad is Karnataka’s second-largest city with a population of 10 lakhs, it stands to gain immensely from public infrastructure development.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has awarded the scheme for “Excellence in Urban Mass Transit Project”. The face of road transport in the state is changing rapidly as a result of this scheme and facilities like a mobile app, web portal and the Smart Card system.
Karnataka shows a consistent performance in several sectors between 2019 and 2020. For example, the state has maintained its rank in the Agriculture and District Administration niches and the e-Governance and Governance segments. Despite a drop in rank, the Municipal Governance segment for Karnataka continues to be amongst the nationally-ranked state categories.
| Medium Performers | ||
| 2020 | 2019 | |
| Agriculture | 4 | 4 |
| District Administration | 10 | 10 |
| e-Governance | 3 | 3 |
| Governance | 6 | 6 |
| Municipal Governance | 10 | 2 |
District Administration has improved in 2020 all over the country. And Karnataka is no different.
District Administration Gadag introduced the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana scheme to improve farmers’ lives in the region. The driving force behind the scheme is an understanding of and empathy for the simple fact that farmers’ livelihoods -and by extension, their entire lives and those of their families- are entirely dependent on forces outside their control. Environmental and climate factors, technology changes as well as external problems like pest infestations etc., can affect yield and sales, leaving the farmer community vulnerable. Thus this scheme looks at crop insurance as a way of safeguarding the farmers’ interests against variable factors.
It also introduced advanced technologies to the community, launching the Samrakshane portal for farmers to enroll online, be a part of the Citizen Portal and access apps and platforms dealing with issues of interest like crop cutting. A significant contribution of this system is that it minimizes the involvement of insurance agencies and third-party actors and consequently encourages farmers to take ownership of their own interests.
The push to introduce technology and transparent governance in the agricultural space is in sync with Prime Minister Modi’s vision for an integrated India where the modern and the traditional work together in harmony.
SKOCH notes the work done by the Sandur Swayam Shakthi Scheme by the District Administration of Ballari in the fields of women empowerment and rural development. The scheme focuses on skill-building in a variety of trades such as driving, tailoring, masonry and electrical work. Candidates are evaluated and selected on the basis of a transparent and fair process so that a viable number can receive truly transformative instruction in their respective fields.
The Covid Geospatial Portal developed by the Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre is the first geoportal of its kind in the country. The portal was used to monitor Fever Clinics, hospitals, sample collection centres, testing labs and Covid Care Centres. Details about patients, their households and associates especially helped authorities monitor and manage the situation, taking precautions and decisions on the basis of data collected. Details about individual medical complaints, travel history, contact tracing, cluster formation, containment zones etc., were interpreted for spatial diffusion analysis and health surveys.
The Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre has developed the Forest Fire Monitoring and Analysis system to provide real-time advisories about forest fires to the authorities. The portal uses integrated technologies like SMS/Email, GPS tracking, RS & GIS layers as well as web and mobile apps. The system alerts the jurisdictional authority on matters like critical status, navigational assistance, fire spread vulnerability and also forecasted weather developments. It is certainly an impactful use case of technology across administrative, public safety, resource management and governance niches.
The Karnataka State of Governance 2020 review is peppered with success stories and stability. However, there are also some areas that need more intervention. For example, Ease of Doing Business and Finance & Revenue have not been ranked for the last two years. Rural and Urban Development have also not made a mark in this time. Even though Police & Safety segment has grown in many places this past year, the same cannot be said for Karnataka. Other indifferent performance sectors include Education, Power & Energy and Skill Development, as well as Water and Women & Child Development.
A year and some since the pandemic started, it continues to be the foremost topic on everyone’s mind. As we study how governance fared in 2020, a significant amount of attention has been paid to how different states responded to Covid-19. There have been several inspiring, striking examples from all over the country and Karnataka is no different.
For example, the Directorate of Health & Family Welfare Karnataka’s Capacity Building program is an impactful project. The scheme is aimed at designing and teaching best practices for dealing with the pandemic. Launched in March 2020 as a virtual platform at first, the project began with raising awareness about the situation and included a training program for healthcare professionals, paramedics and ASHA workers. Live training modules as well as recordings online, both in English and Kannada, were made available for both medical and non-medical audiences.
Another significant example of Covid relief efforts came from the Directorate of Health & Family Welfare, Anandarao Circle, and early testing services for SARS-Cov2. The state began testing at 2 laboratories as early as 2nd February 2020, at a time when the world was barely beginning to realise the enormity of the challenge at-hand. The dearth of specially-trained personnel, sample collection kits and consumables, RT-PCR labs and adequate storage and transport facilities along with thousands of people returning to their home states made this an exceptionally difficult time but the Karnataka government sprang into action. Scaling-up labs, training personnel, readying backup teams, strict control and monitoring mechanisms, dedicated teams for specific areas and digital integration with departments across the state are some of the key features of performance in this time.
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