Janaagraha

Santosh Nargund, Head - Participatory Governance, Janaagraha will be speaking at an upcoming webinar on Community Engagement in our Cities. The discussion will explore the importance of involving people in decision-making processes and examine the link between community engagement and governance.   Sarah Misra, Chief Operations Officer, Reap Benefit will be a part of the panel, with Siddharth Pandit, CEO, Urban Collective Action Network (U-CAN) as moderator.   🗓️ Date: 18 October, 2024  ⏰ Time: 5:00 - 6:00 PM IST   Register now: https://lnkd.in/g2MDSrgS  

This Gandhi Jayanti, we reflect on 'Janaagraha', a name we coined in 2001, inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's 'Satyagraha' while envisioning a new era of urban transformation. #GandhiJayanti #Janaagraha #CitySystems #UrbanDevelopment #UrbanTransformation

V R Vachana, Head - Municipal Law and Policy, Janaagraha, will be a featured speaker at the upcoming Smart Density webinar on 'How Indian Cities Are Transforming through Design and Planning'. This webinar, part of the Urban Design Roundtable Series, will spotlight India's rapid urbanisation, exploring innovative urban design and planning approaches that are shaping the future of local urban landscapes. Joining Vachana on the panel are Siddharth Bathla, Co-founder of Design Factory India, Vidhya Mohankumar, Founder of Urban Design Collective (UDC), and Mansi Sahu, Urban Planner at StudioPOD. The discussion will be expertly moderated by Naama Blonder. Date: Tuesday, 24 September, 2024  Time: 10:00 AM EST  Register here: https://lnkd.in/gZVnfM5j

The Union Cabinet has cleared the proposal to hold simultaneous elections to Parliament and all state assemblies — One Nation, One election (ONOE). The proposal has been recommended by a high-level committee headed by former President Ramnath Kovind. Phase I will see the conduct of Lok Sabha and assembly elections, while Phase 2 — to be held within 100 days of the first — will see elections to local bodies in the third tier of governance. A bill to this effect is expected to be tabled in the Winter Session of Parliament. Can this finally ensure that India's cities and towns have timely elections to local bodies, which have so often been ignored. Op-ed by Santosh Nargund of Janaagraha: https://lnkd.in/geq8YWmq Also, some possible challenges and concerns regarding implementation of #ONOE in this background note from our archives: https://lnkd.in/gqP9wG2a Satarupa Bhattacharya Meera K Sahana Charan Sandhya Bhat Meenakshi Ramesh

Democracy is a two-way street. It thrives not just on the rights we enjoy, but on the responsibilities we uphold. Active citizenship forms the bedrock of a robust democracy, embodying the principle that citizen participation extends far beyond the act of voting. This Democracy Day read 'My City My Responsibility', a comprehensive handbook designed to empower citizens to become catalysts for change in their neighbourhoods. This handbook offers practical insights on addressing civic issues, fostering collaboration within citizen collectives, and maximising the potential of collective action. Read here: https://lnkd.in/gum_VPjY #DemocracyDay #UrbanGovernance #ActiveCitizen #CitizenParticipation #CitySystems #ActiveCitizenship #CollectiveAction

We recently released a report titled ‘A Critical Review of Decentralised Participatory Governance in Cities of Karnataka’. This study reveals substantial shortcomings in the implementation of the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, which mandates local self-governance in towns and cities of India. The report identifies factors crucial for developing responsive city governments and driving progress in equity, public health, and environmental sustainability. These include conducting timely elections, implementing effective decentralisation of power, and fostering active citizen participation. Key findings: · City governments lack control over 15 of 18 constitutionally-mandated municipal functions.  · Municipal corporation elections face an average 22-month delay, while municipal council formation and mayoral elections are delayed by 2.5 years. · 10 out of 11 city corporations in Karnataka lack operational ward committees. · City governments exhibit poor transparency, with citizens unable to access council debates, proceedings, or information on development projects. Find below the key highlights of the report. To mark the release, Janaagraha hosted the Karnataka Urban Governance Roundtable on 31 August 2024. The event brought together political leaders, constitutional authorities, academics, and community leaders from the Karnataka Ward Samiti Balaga. For the full report and media coverage, visit: https://lnkd.in/gxgSqufd #UrbanGovernance #LocalDemocracy #Decentralisation #Karnataka #CivicEngagement #UrbanPolicy Srikanth Viswanathan | Santosh Nargund | Manjunatha Hampapura L | V R Vachana | Manjunath Mokashi | Shivashankar Aiholi | N.M. Varchaswini |

On 26 August, Janaagraha hosted a roundtable discussion with NITI Aayog on 'The Bengaluru Story: Balancing Growth, Sustainability, and Inclusion.' Mr Suman K. Bery, Vice Chairperson, NITI Aayog, and Srikanth Viswanathan, CEO, Janaagraha, led the discussion. The event brought together 18 senior stakeholders from industry, venture capital, philanthropy, and civil society to explore the city's growth trajectory and future challenges. Key discussion points included: 1. Enhancing Bengaluru's Competitiveness and Liveability  2. Promoting Inclusive Economic Growth  3. Improving Urban Planning and Governance  4. Developing Sustainable Mobility and Infrastructure  5. Collaborative Approach to City Development A sense of cautious optimism pervaded the conversation, despite acknowledgment of the city's challenges. Participants highlighted Bengaluru's greatest asset: its people, with their vibrant culture of innovation, inclusion, and active citizenship. This spirit, they agreed, must be nurtured to shape the city's future. At Janaagraha, we believe a city-systems approach with a special focus on integrating the 4Es: economy, equity, environment, and engagement will be critical to solving the city’s challenges. Strong state capacities, coupled with effective decentralisation, are key to achieving balanced, place-based development and ensuring that Bengaluru's growth is sustainable and inclusive. Attendees:  Rajeev Gowda, Former Chair, State Institute for Transformation of Karnataka  S. Vaitheeswaran, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Manipal Education & Medical Group  Lakshminarayan M, Former Joint Managing Director, Bosch India  Narayan Ramachandran, Chairman, TeamLease Services Limited and Co-Founder, The Takshashila Institution   Revathy Ashok, Angel Investor and Managing Trustee, B.PAC - Bangalore Political Action Committee  Shruti Shibulal, CEO and Director, Tamara Leisure Experiences Pvt. Ltd.  Madan Padaki, Director, TiE Bangalore   Dinesh Pai, Head, Rainmatter by Zerodha Gayathri Vasudevan, Chairperson, LabourNet Services India Pvt. Ltd.  Jaya Dhindaw, Executive Programme Director, World Resources Institute  Jai Asundi, Executive Director, CSTEP   Sameer Shisodia, CEO, Rainmatter Foundation  Murugan Vasudevan, CEO, Veddis Foundation  Shama Karkal, Partner, Swasti - The Health Catalyst  Yamini Atmavilas, Director, Gender, Dasra  Malini Goyal, Founder and CEO, UnboxingBLR   Rajagopal G, Director and Group CEO, Columbia Pacific Communities  Narayan P.S., Managing Trustee, Wipro Foundation  Key discussion points are attached below. #UrbanDevelopment #Bengaluru #NITIAayog #SustainableGrowth  Krishnan S. Kesava Balaji

On 26 August 2024, Prabhat Kumar, Head - Public Finance Management, Janaagraha, moderated a session on "Decoding the Indian Budget from the Prism of Bihar" at Raj Bhavan, Bihar. The event was organised under the aegis of "Raj Bhavan Samvad", a lecture series that serves as a platform for insightful discussions and knowledge sharing, with the aim of contributing to economic development and good governance in the state. The session was attended by Sri Rajendra Arlekar, Hon'ble Governor of Bihar, and featured a distinguished panel of experts: Sri Nitish Mishra, Minister of Industries and Tourism, Bihar; Dr. Shamika Ravi, Member of the PM Economic Advisory Council; and Ratan Kesh, MD & CEO (Interim) of Bandhan Bank. The panel discussion focused on the potential role of the Union Budget 2024-25 in catalysing economic development in Bihar. Additionally, the conversation delved into the current status of development in Bihar and explored future possibilities for accelerating the state's growth. #RajBhavanBihar #IndianBudget #RajBhavanSanvad #EconomicDevelopment #GoodGovernance

Srikanth Viswanathan, CEO, Janaagraha, spoke on the importance of building partnerships to drive effective governance in India during the 5th anniversary event of Centre for Effective Governance of Indian States (CEGIS). We have deeply valued our collaboration with CEGIS over the past few years, encompassing various initiatives from the Women's Public Finance Fellowship in Tamil Nadu to now co-anchoring a coalition for public finance. These partnerships have not only been enriching for both our teams but also showed us the need for greater cooperation in the Indian development ecosystem in order to maximise impact and leverage our complementary strengths.  We look forward to the many possibilities ahead as we continue to work together to drive meaningful change. Congratulations to the CEGIS team on reaching this milestone!  Ashish Dhawan Karthik Muralidharan Vijay Pingale #PublicFinance #MunicipalFinance #CitySystems #UrbanGovernance #UrbanDevelopment #CEGISinAction #CEGISAt5

#Hiring If you are a passionate individual with a drive to transform Public Finance Management (PFM) to enhance governance and urban infrastructure and services, then we are looking for you! At Janaagraha, we are looking for a Senior Manager, Manager and an Associate Manager to join us on our journey to lead systemic reforms in Municipal Finance and Public Financial Management (PFM). As a member of our PFM team, you will get the opportunity to work and collaborate with the central government, state governments and city governments on designing and implementing reforms for improving service delivery in Urban Local Bodies. You can find more details about the roles here: Senior Manager – Public Finance Management https://lnkd.in/gQsfejwV Manager – Public Finance Management https://lnkd.in/g4-bu4pT Associate Manager – Public Finance Management https://lnkd.in/gnMYMm-x Prabhat Kumar Apula Singh Suvashika Krishnamurthy #Janaagraha #JobOpportunities #PublicFinanceManagement #HiringNow #CareerOpportunities #SocialImpactJobs #SeniorManager #AssociateManager #SystemicReforms #JoinOurTeam