Workshop Report
The first panelist Mr. Rajan Kashyap began his talk by posing a question: Whether inefficient government can breathe efficient governance? He differentiated the governance differences between the government and corporate sector in terms of the legal form as well as governance practices. He emphasized that in government sector performance was not that important vis-à-vis corporate sector wherein the actual performance should be tangible and visible. This is due to the fact that corporation's failure to perform in a competitive market for resources may result in important stakeholders' withdrawing their support and looking elsewhere for gratification of their respective portfolios. The Right to Information Act, 2005 would, however, help in bringing the much desired transparency in the government sector. Transparency in government sector is going to make it easier for the corporate sector to take decisions effectively and efficiently. Further, he emphasized the role of media as a stakeholder in government sector as well as in corporate sector. He concluded his talk by highlighting that the primary engine of economic growth cannot continue in the absence of effective governance practices.