Even good news is bad news in Tamil Nadu, a State vertically divided between the AIADMK and the DMK as the two poles of the political spectrum. So, the recent announcement by the Union Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pension that Tamil Nadu has topped the Good Governance Index among 18 big States in the country, a commendable achievement by any standard, not only failed to cheer up the Opposition DMK but even earned the wrath of the Leader of the Opposition MK Stalin who described the ranking flawed.
“This is a feat which has to be appreciated as Tamil Nadu has done reasonably well in some of the crucial parameters while it has averaged in certain sectors,†said T Ramakrishnan, author and chronicler of the State’s political history. He said this was the first achievement of its kind by Tamil Nadu in recent past.
The rankings in Good Governance Index is determined by the overall performance of the States in ten crucial sectors over a period of time. “This is not an yearly ritual but an ongoing exercise where the achievements and performances are ranked based on development and shortcomings †explained Dr C Murukadas, author and senior professor of economics, Madras University.
According to the union ministry, Tamil Nadu has topped five out of the six parameters which helped it to walk away with the honors. The State leads others in public infrastructure, judicial and public security, and public health among others. But the State could finish only in the 14th position in crucial areas like commerce and industries.
The ministry zeroed in on Tamil Nadu based on its performance in ten sectors. “Agriculture and allied, commerce and industries, human resources development, public health and public infrastructure and utilities, economic governance, social welfare and development , judicial and public security, environment and citizen centric governance are the areas in which Tamil Nadu scored over others,†said Ramakrishnan.
The ministry said that top ranking in judicial and public security was due to the conviction rate and availability of police personnel, proportion of women police personnel and disposal of court cases.
Prof Murukadas, whose assessments on economy is widely regarded as sharp and objective, felt that the governance by Edappadi Palaniswamy was in the right direction and the State has witnessed good progress. “You have to take into account the tenure of former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa who facilitated high speed social and economic progress,†he said.
But Stalin is not amused by the feat achieved by Tamil Nadu and this has surprised many including some of the DMK leaders. The DMK chief described the GGI awarded to Tamil Nadu as a ploy by the BJP to ensued that the State does not make any progress. “We all know that the BJP has no base in Tamil Nadu and they do not want the State to prosper. There is also a close relation between the BJP and the AIADMK. Hence one may have to doubt this honor as a strategy by the BJP to prop up the AIADMK Government in the State. A thorough probe should be ordered into the rankings as Tamil Nadu has done well only in two out of the nine parameters,†said Stalin in a release.
Prof Murukadas said that top position is arrived on the basis of average overall performance. “Stalin may not be aware of the methodology to arrive at the top position. It is indisputable that in many fields Tamil Nadu during EPS as chief minister has performed notably,†he said.
The AAIADMK on its part chose to react cautiously to the feat. “It is a New Year Gift, no doubt,†said D Jayakumar, Tamil Nadu minister for fisheries who is also the official spokesman of the Government. He said the top priority of the Government was to make up for the shortcomings if any in the commerce and industries sectors where the State’s performance was not as impressive as expected.
Once we score in these fields, I am sure the people of Tamil Nadu would reassert their confidence and trust in us,†said Jayakumar.
