As the Narendra Modi government completes two years, there are various challenges that it is facing both politically and economically. To get a better perspective of where the Modi government stands 2 years after it was sworn in, we asked senior journalist, Shalini Singh to give her view on two years of Modi Sarkar. Have the promises been fulfilled, where has it succeeded and where is it falling short?

1) How do you assess Narendra Modi government after 2 years?

Narendra Modi has made strong, personal commitments, which is suggestive of a well-intentioned, ambitious and dynamic leader, but his government seems to be struggling with delivery, especially with regard to economic performance, job creation and the eradication of corruption - all of which are critical steps towards improving the quality of life of the common man.

Perception and media management also appears to be a prickly issue, which means that even its few successes, in terms of foreign policy and social and infrastructure development are likely to be viewed with suspicion, falling prey to controversy and half-truths and thereby, conveniently leading to adverse propaganda.

The government has fared poorly in getting the GST Bill passed in Parliament which was positioned as a “landmark” and “key” tax reform which could additionally contribute towards pushing India’s GDP up by as much as 2%. The drafting of this legislation leaves much to be desired, though the opposition has been entirely political, with the political dissent also completely overlooking the real glitches.

http://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-gst-bill-flawed-and-conflicted-2080164

http://www.firstpost.com/business/mr-fm-why-pass-a-flawed-cong-drafted-gst-law-when-you-can-do-better-2380350.html

The governments’ failure to implement the enactment of the Land Acquisition Bill has been another disappointment since it would have led to greater transparency in land dealings - which is presently the major conduit of corruption and black money - and much needed development.

My own work and interest as a journalist is in minimizing - if not eradicating - corruption, since I believe corruption is peaking at an unsustainable level.

However, my investigation reveals that the Black Money Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets and (Imposition of Tax) Act, 2015, though ostensibly unleashed as a deadly deterrent against tax offenders, is actually another emasculated, powerless legislation.

http://bit.ly/1OaaTvi

The CBI’s performance, particularly in its investigation of the Rs 1.86 lakh crore coal scam, has also been less than lackluster under the NDA regime, which is additionally worrying.

http://www.firstpost.com/india/coal-scam-naveen-jindal-dasari-narayana-rao-cbi-2766302.html

Transparency, particularly within the government, is essential for the minimization of corruption and there is no evidence of any such transformation, since even the coal auctions were found to be spectacularly and surprisingly, non-transparent.

http://www.firstpost.com/business/second-thoughts-were-the-ndas-coal-auctions-really-that-transparent-2235992.html

2) Do you think Acche Din was just a slogan or happy days are here for economic sector and social sector? 

Acche Din was positioned by Narendra Modi to be a personal promise - of greater prosperity for the common man, through reduced inflation, greater employment and entrepreneurship opportunities. This, in turn, was to be facilitated through policies, including in the social sector that would be geared towards improving the ease of doing business in India. 

However, the cost of living has not reduced significantly, jobs are hard to come by and it is simply not possible for the government to implement its stated agenda in an equitable manner, without striking a body blow at corruption. This is because promoters of companies and even NGO’s are habituated to maximizing their personal wealth through tax evasion and money laundering in overseas tax havens, at the cost of investors and employees, as evident from the Vijay Mallya and multiple other scams.

Acche Din is a fantastic slogan, but only when committed people execute and deliver policies on the ground. And governance can never be delivered through policy statements but only through revolutionary improvements in the grass root delivery mechanism of the government. 

To evaluate if this is happening, the government has to ask itself these basic questions: How many government employees are either equipped or feel motivated to do their job properly? How many have received any training related to their jobs? Do they understand their job mandate or how it impacts others? Do they have a respectable work place? When ministers travel, do they meet their own employees and try to understand their concerns and address them? 

The most important aspect of good governance is enabling the Rule of Law. The Rule of Law becomes dysfunctional when it takes decades to get any justice, assuming that justice is done. It simply encourages people to take matters in their own hands wherever possible and gives an advantage to the privileged - those with muscle power / resources to manipulate the system. 

So while, Prime Minister Modi definitely needs to have more courts and judges because the population has trebled since independence, he cannot usher in Acche Din without ensuring timely justice through effective judicial reforms.

In conclusion, Acche Din is destined to remain a mirage until the government becomes transparent, the corporate sector made accountable, regulators forced to discharge their regulatory functions instead of looking the other way as corporates run amok, timely justice delivered and consumer rights strengthened. These are tough issues that the government will eventually be forced to address, instead of deflecting everything on the Congress' non-cooperation in the Rajya Sabha. 

It will be a tough act for PM Modi to come up with a better slogan in 2019. Even if he does manage to outdo himself, people may not caste their votes the next time round based just on magnificent slogans, without demonstrable delivery on this one. If you recall, in the NDA's previous tenure, "India Shining" boomeranged badly, because most people felt that they had been excluded from this growth story. Their disappointment turned into a 10-year political lottery for the Congress Party.

3) Has Modi polarized the society further or with governments in J&K and Assam, he has made BJP a pan India party?

There is a lot of noise/angst about the polarization of society, particularly, about the government's failure to reign in fringe elements, but the polarization issue needs to be examined more deeply and in its entirety, before rushing to knee-jerk conclusions.

A survey on polarization to really understand what the issues at the ground level would help. Most Muslims continue to state that their major concerns remain lack of healthcare, jobs and education, but this doesn't seem to interest anyone. And other than this, most other issues, in my opinion, are in the realm of propaganda by politicians and special interest groups. 

The BJP’s electoral gains, particularly in Assam, are significant but this places greater responsibility on the NDA to deliver on its mandate. Raising expectations can be wonderful, even uplifting, but only when those expectations are sustainable in the national interest and are fulfilled. If not, the political whiplash can be severe.

4) What would you like to see this government focus on most in next 3 years?

The government should make bureaucracy accountable, through comprehensive reforms which equip them to do their job better, and a reward/punishment mechanism for performers and non-performers. The government should also try to deploy the best skills/talent that is available, external to the IAS ecosystem, since in a rapidly changing world, a generalist is no longer in a position to address and excel in multiple professional arenas.

This issue is assuming greater significance in the light of the fact that several well intentioned moves are backfiring for lack of expertise. A fitting and recent example is the recall of a notification by the ministry of agriculture capping trait fees just a few days ago, on May 24, 2016. 

It is additionally critical for the government to figure out how to align the interests of the bureaucracy with that of the public. As long as there is a mis-alignment between the interests of the executive that is mandated to execute and the public, on whose behalf they are supposed to act, Acche Din will remain a lofty notion.

Finally, all hopes continue to remain pinned on demonstrated evidence that the corrupt are being punished and weeded out. This and only this, will lead to transparency, governance, accountability and meritocracy, eventually culminating in higher, more sustainable and equitable economic growth.