Head of PAC’s Public Policy Research Group, Dr. Kala Seetharam Sridhar, was invited by the India Infrastructure Report (IIR) 2010 to attend a Writer’s Workshop on the 6-7th February for potential contributors to the IIR, 2010 on ‘Infrastructure Development in a Sustainable Low Carbon Economy: Road Ahead for India’.
A book on the 'State of Urban Services in India's Cities: Spending and Financing', co-authored by Dr Kala Seetharam Sridhar and Dr Venugopal Reddy of PAC's Public Policy Research Group has been published by Oxford University Press, Canada.
Kala Seetharam Sridhar (Head) and A. Venugopala Reddy (Research Officer) from Public Policy Research Group have contributed a Chapter in the forthcoming Handbook of Urban Development in India.
The Coalition Against Corruption organised a dharna to commemorate International Anti-Corruption Day on 9th December, 2009.
A survey on various topics concerning the city is conducted by the civic club children of CMCA every year. The findings are then presented by the children as Children’s Report Card to the concerned government authorities and possible solutions listed down as a plea and presented to the authorities. So far, Children’s Report Cards on Greening, Traffic, Plastic, and Water have been presented. The uniqueness of this year’s survey was that it was done by the children of the children on “Me and My City”.
The October 2009 issue of Public Eye is now out. Please read through it to to keep updated with PAC's activities!
PAC was invited to attend a workshop in Dhaka on 'Strengthening Citizen Engagement in Procurement: Reviewing Experiences, Identifying Challenges and Exploring Opportunities' on the 8-10th December 2009.
Dr. Yang Xuedong, a senior policy researcher at the China Centre for Comparative Politics and Economics, was on visiting fellowship with PAC for 5 months researching the local governance systems in India, with particular reference to the Panchayati Raj system. At the end of his tenure he had given a presentation within PAC on 'Innovations in Local Governance in China' as a knowledge-sharing exercise. Dr. Yang first explained the overarching governance architecture in China and then went on to discuss innovations in local governance which have made public service delivery more efficient, accountable and responsive to the citizen’s needs.
1. Citizens’ involvement, need of the hour – a clear message from CRC on services of Gram Panchayats in Koraput district, Orissa 2. CRC workshop in Cape Town 3. CRC workshop in Cambodia
The press release for the findings of Phase 2 of PAC's monitoring and evaluative study on rural road construction: 'Citizen's Monitoring and Audit of Pradan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana' has now been issued.
The Citizens Report Card Video has now been put on YouTube.
Press Conference for the National Release of the Findings of, “National Assessment of the Degree of Compliance to Suo Moto Disclosure Provisions of the RTI Act, 2005” was held on the 9th of March, 2009 at Hotel Capitol in Bangalore.
There was a large media presence at the press conference, hosted by the State Police Department, unveiling the initiation of PAC's significant study on citizen's perceptions on the frontline delivery of policing services and the internal work culture and constraints faced by the police to meet the demands made upon them.
Dr. Kala Seetharam Sridhar was invited to attend the launch of the 2009 ADB-ESCAP-UNDP Regional MDG Report 'A Future Within Reach, 2009: Achieving the Millennium Development Goals in an Era of Uncertainty'. A follow-up workshop was also conducted on 'MDGs beyond 2015'
A monitoring visit was conducted by partner agencies in the Coalition Against Corruption (CAC) to the Help-Desks run by CAC in Jayanagar Government Hospital and Ramanagara District Hospital on the 22nd December.
A five day workshop was conducted by the International Budget Partnership in Mumbai from 14th to 18th Dec 2009. Dr. Meena Nair and Ms. Prarthana Rao from the PGRG attended the workshop representing PAC. The agenda for the workshop was to fine tune the methodology and study design of each of the IBP’s India initiatives and understand when and where any technical assistance from IBP was required. PAC is being supported by the IBP in its project to ‘Monitor Expenditure and Outcomes to Improve Health Services for Urban Poor Women in Bangalore’.
PAC Bangalore has appointed Mr. Raghavan Suresh as its new Director.