India’s Citizen’s Charters: A Decade of Experience

In 1997, the Government of India launched the ambitious “Citizen’s Charter”initiative both in central and state government departments in an effortto make public service providers more open and accountable. This study tracks the progress and effectiveness of this reform over the pastdecade.

The study assessed nearly 760 charters from across the country,followed by interviews with more than 1,100 end-users and over 320 officials from diverse departments. The distribution of Citizen’s Charters by state and sector, design and content of the charters, access to and awareness about the charters, modalities of implementation, and impact onservice delivery are analyzed in terms of both strengths and weaknesses.The study also highlights the implications for policy in order to take thisreform forward.