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@article{209218,
        author = {Dr.T.Anuradha},
        title = {Good Governance, Citizen Charters, the Right to Information, and Public Service Delivery in India in the Global Perspective},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {5},
        pages = {1003-1012},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=209218},
        abstract = {The relationship between the citizen and the administrative state has undergone a significant conceptual shift over the last three decades. Where citizens were once treated primarily as subjects of administrative action, contemporary governance theory positions them as rights-holders to whom the administration owes enforceable duties of transparency, responsiveness, and timely service. This shift is “good governance”: a framework built on accountability, transparency, participation, rule of law, and responsiveness, which has moved from being an aspirational ideal in development discourse to a set of concrete administrative instruments in many jurisdictions. Good governance rests on a reciprocal relationship between the rights citizens hold against the state and the responsibilities the administrative machinery owes in return. This paper examines whether the Citizen's Charters and the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 in India has improved public service delivery. The paper draws on a structured literature review of Indian administrative reform documents, state-level Right to Service legislation, and comparative experience from across the world. The paper develops and examines two hypotheses: First, that citizen charters and RTI mechanisms are positively associated with improvements in the service delivery outcomes in India; and second, that this association depends on enforceability, grievance redressal capacity, and citizen awareness rather than on the mere existence of a charter.
The analysis synthesises secondary data, including national awareness surveys, grievance-redressal statistics, and state Right to Service Act outcomes. Findings suggest that citizen charters in India have functioned merely as declaratory statements of intent than as enforceable guarantees, with gaps in awareness, weak grievance mechanisms, and limited legal backing, diluting their impact. Comparatively jurisdictions that combined charters with statutory service guarantees, time-bound delivery and independent working recorded better outcomes. The paper concludes with suggestions for converging India's citizen charter framework with its Right to Service Acts and RTI architecture while integrating it with e-governance platforms. This would deliver stronger grievance redressal design, as seen in the international experience.},
        keywords = {good governance, citizen rights, administrative accountability, Citizen's Charter, Right to Information, public service delivery, India},
        month = {October},
        }