Introducing E-Governance: Philosophy, Theory and Practice -- Contextualizing the Evolutionary Trajectory of E-Governance -- The Journey of E-Governance in India -- Structural Framework of E-Governance -- Development and Electronic Governance: Empowering Rural Citizens -- Application of E-Governance -- Techniques of E-Governance -- ICT and Public Administration -- Empowering Women through E-Governance -- Common Service Centre: Citizens Interface with E-Governance -- Negotiating the Challenges of E-Governance -- Futuristic Vision of E-Governance with Transformative Goals: The Journey Ahead.
The emergence of Feminist Political Ecological (FPE) position allows to rethink about social institutions like Self Help Groups (SHGs) as foundations for building green movements through everyday practice. The collective voice that has helped them emerge economically self-sufficient is reflected in their decision making, when the larger cause of climate change or environmental decision-making are involved. It is time that their actions permeating the ecology and environment gains credence and such coalitions provide ground as movements for achieving the larger collective agenda.
Idea of SHGs as social capital helped the marginalized women create different 'gendered subjectivities' and endowed them with a collective voice, be it conservation of their own ecological settings or confronting the social system. The case of Climate Credit Pilot Project and/or conservation of indigenous seed varieties in remote villages of Odisha bear testimony to women's consciousness regarding climate mitigation initiatives and the meaningful actions associated with environmental justice. Such interventions show that the embedment of economic, social and cultural values of SHG groups align with their instinct for attaining a larger goal of environment protection through household and community level actions.
The gendered subjectivities including increased social consciousness among women, better access to new information, up-skilling has made them better and enlightened decision makers. The practice of joint or consensual action by SHG collectives enable them to address multi-scalar issues like climate change. However, the broader agenda of social and economic empowerment has to align with their decision making power relating to their immediate ecology and environment. In this context, the proposed study will probe emerging social consciousness of women on climate change issues, while examining their larger environmental responsibility in local situation, wherein the women remain at the receiving end. This is a field-based exploratory study of women from subsistence and indigenous communities of three districts in Odisha which interrogates the role of SHGs in creating a social space for women to engage with the question of environmental decision making. The study intends to analyse the field data in relation to environmental rights, responsibilities and knowledge of rural and Adivasi women within the institution of SHGs. It aims to formulate the concept, i.e., can SHGs be seen as co-linear spaces which needs to be strengthened as bearers of green movements at the local level as a response to the climate crisis.
LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and asexual) is an evolving issue which needs to be debated in the legislatures and political space in general to deconstruct and redefine the narratives which have been influenced by the dominant sociocultural stereotypes. This is important in the context of the changing scenario worldwide involving the LGBTQIA+ community where assertions are being witnessed to reclaim the democratic space and civil rights to give shape to a more egalitarian and inclusive civic culture. This article highlights the changing character of the public discourse on LGBTQIA+ community in India in recent times and its impact on the judiciary and the political system. In the light of the recent Supreme Court landmark verdict of decriminalising Section 377 of Indian Penal Code (IPC), the present article seeks to examine a vast array of possibilities and challenges before the LGBTQIA+ community. The legal safeguards guaranteed through judicial pronouncements by the Supreme Court (6 September 2018), however, do not ensure the creation of an enabling social environment to accept homosexuality as a 'normal behaviour'. Hence, unless corresponding corrective measures are taken to bring about social reforms for change of perception towards the homosexuality community, no amount of judicial intervention will guarantee their inclusion in the mainstream.
Contemporary states act as facilitators and this facilitation can be result oriented and successful only when effective governance is ensured. In the era of globalisation, greater emphasis is being laid today on good governance because of the critical link between the state and the global community. The nation states need to reinvent themselves and reframe their development strategy, which requires a thorough revision of their existing approach to international relations and internal governance. As a part of the ongoing administrative reform process, e-governance envisages a structural change in the bureaucracy and is perceived as a key to a more flexible and proactive governance in tune with the concerns of citizen-friendly administration. The present article explores the challenges and prospects of e-governance and tries to delve into the complex socio-cultural dynamics alongside political-bureaucratic initiatives that are crucial factors for the successful transition from traditional governance to the electronic governance. It attempts to situate the ongoing Digital India Mission in the larger context of good governance by examining the case study of the Indian Province of Odisha, where a silent but stunning revolution is taking shape.
Violence against the vulnerable sections of the society arising due to multitude factors in the era of globalisation is a serious matter of social and academic discourse. The growing incidence of violence perpetrated against women in contemporary times is a testimony to the fast-eroding idea of human security in a globalised world, which originates from the patriarchal power structure existing in the society. Women at large are proving to be the most vulnerable section of the society, who bear the brunt of the ongoing process of social and economic transformations in the 21st century. Globalisation has presented new challenges for the realisation of the goal of women's equality and justice, the gender impact of which has not been systematically evaluated fully. Benefits of the growing global economy are unevenly distributed leading to wide economic disparities, the feminisation of poverty, increased gender inequality through deteriorating working conditions and an unsafe working environment, especially in the rural areas. Violence against tribal women as a legitimate human rights issue is examined within four broad parameters of globalisation, development, displacement and migration.
