Shift In Priorities Of Performer States In 2021

PERFORMERS

The states that are ranked from the sixth to the 10^th position are categorised as PERFORMERS.

Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Himachal Pradesh have secured their positions in PERFORMERS category.

Telangana: Telangana has significantly improved its ranking. It climbed to the sixth position in 2021 from the ninth position in 2020.

Uttar Pradesh: Uttar Pradesh has maintained its position in the top 10. However, it has slipped one place to the seventh position in 2021 from the sixth position achieved in both 2020 and 2019. Uttar Pradesh’s best performance was in 2018 when it had acquired the second position.

Madhya Pradesh: Madhya Pradesh slipped to the eighth position in 2021 from the fifth position in 2020. The state had made a huge improvement in its ranking in 2020 climbing to the fifth position from the 11^th position in 2019. However, it could not maintain its tempo in 2021 and suffered a loss of three positions. Madhya Pradesh was ranked at the 12^th position in 2018.

Assam: Assam made a massive gain in its ranking. It climbed 14 spot to acquire the ninth position in 2021 from the 23^rd position in 2020. Assam’s best performance was in 2019 when it secured the seventh position. In 2018, Assam was ranked at the 10^th position.

Himachal Pradesh: Himachal Pradesh moved to the top 10 ranking states for the first time in four years. Himachal Pradesh climbed six spots to secure the 10^th position in 2021 from the 16^th position in 2020. In 2019, Himachal Pradesh was placed at the 14^th position. It had also made massive gains in 2019 climbing to the 14^th position from the 27^th position in 2018. 

Shift in Priorities of PERFORMER States

Police & Safety, Power & Energy, Urban Development, Finance & Revenue and Ease of Doing Business gained primacy in PERFORMER states during 2021.

The sectors that witnessed declined focus include: General Administration, health, municipal governance, sanitation and e-Governance.

Sectors with Increased Focus

Police & Safety: The second highest number of good governance initiatives taken in PERFORMER category states in 2021 was related to police and safety. It accounted for 18.6 per cent of the total good governance initiatives. In 2020, only 4.6 per cent of the total good governance initiatives in PERFORMER category state were related to police and safety. It stood at 13.3 per cent in 2019.

Power & Energy: The good governance initiatives related to power and energy in PERFORMER category states rose to 5.4 per cent in 2021 from 3.4 per cent in 2020 and 3.1 per cent of the total initiatives recorded in 2019.

Ease of Doing Business: A substantial number of good governance initiatives in the PERFORMER category states in 2021 were related to ease of doing business. Of the total good governance initiatives in the PERFORMER states 5.4 per cent were related to ease of doing business. No initiative in this category was selected for SKOCH State of Governance in 2020 and 2019.

Finance & Revenue: Finance and revenue got good focus among PERFORMER category states in 2021. Of the total good governance initiatives taken in 2021, 3.9 per cent were related to finance and revenue. No finance and revenue related initiative was selected in the previous two years.

Urban Development: PERFORMER category states took a substantial number of good governance initiatives related to urban development during the COVID pandemic. In 2020, 2.9 per cent of the total good governance initiatives taken in the PERFORMER category states were related to urban development. It rose to 3.9 per cent in 2021. No initiative from this category was recorded in 2019.

Sectors with Less Focus

District Governance: The district governance got primacy during the COVID pandemic period. More than half of the good governance initiatives taken in the PERFORMER category states in 2020 were related to the district governance. Although it remained a major focus area in 2021 as well, the number of and proportion of initiatives declined. In 2020, more than half (54.6 per cent) of the total good governance initiatives in the PERFORMER category states were related to the district governance. It declined to 24.8 per cent in 2021. Despite the decline, it remained much higher than the pre-COVID period. In 2019, only 9.2 per cent of the total initiatives were related to the district governance.

Municipal Governance: The focus in the PERFORMER category states has gradually shifted away from municipal governance. In 2019, the highest focus in the PERFORMER category states was on municipal governance. It stood at 18.4 per cent in 2019. The share of municipal governance in total good governance initiatives fell to 16.7 per cent in 2020 and declined sharply to 7.8 per cent in 2021.

Sanitation: Sanitation has taken the back seat in the COVID pandemic period. In 2019, 15.3 per cent of the total good governance initiatives taken in PERFORMER category states were related to sanitation. This fell to 2.9 per cent in 2020. No sanitation related initiative was selected for SKOCH State of Governance 2021.

General Administration: The general administration took the back seat at almost all levels of governance during the COVID period. The share of general administration in total good governance initiatives taken in 2020 fell to 1.7 per cent from 6.1 per cent in 2019. No general administration related initiative was selected in 2021.