Discuss the conditions, that in the last few decades, have led to the emergence of a new civil society in urban India. Highlight its contribution in policy change and making governance more effective.

Civil society organizations refer to an organized group of people fighting for their concerns through peaceful means or working towards citizen empowerment. It includes NGOs, Self-help groups, charities, pressure groups, and trade associations & advocacy groups like FICCI, ASSOCHAM, etc. Conditions that led to their rise: LPG (liberalization, privatization, and globalization) reforms of 1991 paved ..

Topics: 040 - Pressure Groups and Formal Informal Associations • 050 - Important Aspects of Governance Transparency and Accountability Citizen Charters

Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 and NGOs

NGOs play a vital role in the upliftment of the downtrodden in any society. This is particularly true for countries such as India, where inequality is high, benefits reach only a handful of the population and a large section of the society lives below the poverty line. The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 or FCRA, ..

Topics: 040 - Pressure Groups and Formal Informal Associations

Do you agree with this view that informal pressure groups have emerged as more powerful than formal pressure groups in recent years?

Pressure groups A pressure group is what tries to influence public opinion and the policy for a particular reason. Their role is very significant for the development of political and social systems. The action of the pressure group is usually based on various things i.e. political, religious, commercial positions. They conduct media campaigning, publicity stunts, ..

Topics: 040 - Pressure Groups and Formal Informal Associations

“The emergence of the Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in contemporary times points to the slow but steady withdrawal of the State from development activities.”Examine the role of SHGs in development activities and the measures taken by the Government of India to promote SHGs.

A self-help group is a type of financial mediator committee. It consists of a group of about 10 to 20 members, women or men of the age group of 18 to 40 years. Most of the self-help groups are found in India. One person is associated with collecting the money and gives the money to ..

Topics: 040 - Pressure Groups and Formal Informal Associations

Discuss the various functions of Pressure groups while commenting their role on healthy democratic system.

Despite the fact that the pressure groups don’t contest in elections, they play important role for healthy democratic system via their various functions. The key functions of pressure groups are representation, political participation, education and policy formulation. Representation Pressure groups provide an alternative to the formal representative process or the functional representation by providing mouthpiece for groups ..

Topics: 040 - Pressure Groups and Formal Informal Associations

Discuss the various functions of Pressure groups while commenting their role on healthy democratic system.

The functions of pressure groups especially with respect to strengthening the democratic system are as follows- The pressure groups themselves do not want to form any Government. But, they play an important role in influencing the decisions of the Government. The pressure groups represent the common interests of the people. The pressure groups make use ..

Topics: 040 - Pressure Groups and Formal Informal Associations