Our Mission
(हमारा मिशन, మా మిషన్, മലയാളം)
What we do
Matters relating to taxation, government borrowing and expenditure by both the Union and State governments are increasingly becoming more and more complex in their content as well as impact on society.
The operations of public sector enterprises outside the general government can have serious implications for budgets of the governments, such as in banking (for the Union government) and power (State Governments). Similarly, actions of the regulators, for example on pricing of services, can have a significant impact on government budgets. Development financial institutions outside the budget system play an increasingly important role and their decision can have significant budgetary and developmental implications for Union-State relations; an example being in financing of national highways. Increasingly, a large number of obligations are being entered into by the Union government to fulfill obligations relating to provision of global public goods, as in dealing with climate change.
These many complexities make it difficult for the citizen to understand a range of issues arising from Union and State government actions that have a deep impact on her life. The lack of transparency in decision-making and the obfuscation in conveying information adds to the citizen’s difficulty in understanding issues relating to the government’s financial transactions and Union-State financial flows.
These also pose a challenge to the expert and the knowledgeable who must seek in all humility to untangle the many layers of complexity before communicating her understanding to the citizen.
The Forum for State Studies attempts to transform the public understanding of taxation and expenditure matters and union-state relations with the objective of empowering the common person in India.
We hope to provide high-quality and impartial analysis that:
- explains the concepts and policies relating to financial transactions of the Union and State governments
- disseminates information in a clear and transparent manner that enables a better understanding by the public
We feel that this way the citizen will be able to better understand issues that directly impact her interests. The common person may then be able to better articulate her interests.
State studies must cover a much larger area than just fiscal matters. As the Forum gradually expands its activities it will seek to analyse a wider and wider set of issues: institutional arrangements governing Union-State relations and even sectoral studies such as state initiatives in health, education, agriculture and other areas where the States are dominant.
We aim to achieve this by engaging:
- with individuals whose understanding of fiscal matters has implications for the common person.
- directly with the citizen to understand her concerns and interests
Why we are doing what we do
60% of India’s government expenditure is spent by state governments and 79% of government employees are employed by state governments. This is a reflection of the federal structure established by India’s Constitution. Despite their crucial place in national governance, there is a lack of awareness and discourse on states’ fiscal policies. Furthermore, governments at all levels are facing evolving proposals and challenges. There is a need to untangle the new complexities in governance and bring clarity to ourselves and the common person.
Who we are
We’re a group of economists, legal experts, former central and commercial bankers, and former bureaucrats who have had a close involvement in public policy and Union-State affairs. We’ve come together with a commitment to avoid partisanship and to make our assumptions explicit