Why is India's Olympic Output so Dismal? The Governance Perspective

Most modern countries seem to be able to govern themselves effectively enough with about 15-20 ministries; the US has 15 Departments, the UK has 19 Ministries, and France has 15. Modern India has given new meaning to the term ‘bloated bureaucracy’ with an astoundingly unnecessary 55 Ministries and Departments. 

In India’s parliamentary democracy, members of parliament are elected by proportional representation. From that pool of parliamentarians chosen by the demos, the Prime Minister is supposed to select his Cabinet; the elite group that is most qualified to head the respective key ministries and set the direction of the country. Original intentions were perhaps noble, but over time, India’s Political Patronage Pyramid has distorted the cabinet system to levels that defy comprehension. 

With no clear majorities in India's proportional representation parliamentary system (as opposed to winner-take-all systems like the US Congress) shaky coalition governments are the norm. Leading parties are increasingly held hostage by small political parties threatening to withdraw their support. Upward accountability is long gone; instead, this 'hostage crisis' has lead to bureaucratic bloat.  First a Directorate is created to accommodate some minor political party, which is then upgraded to a Department as the demands grow, which then becomes a Ministry as the party gains regional clout. Instead of striving for administrative competency or economic efficiency, the Indian government is striving for increased political accommodation and patronage. 

Downward accountability is essentially non-existent, as most of the voting demos (the vital majority in any democracy) is too destitute to demand performance and too poor to not be swayed by vote-buying gimmicks.

 

As of 2012, India’s List of Ministries:

Ministry of Defense

Ministry of External Affairs

Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs

Ministry of Rural Development

Ministry of Law & Justice

Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment

Ministry of Agriculture

Ministry of Minority Affairs

Ministry of Tribal Affairs

Ministry of Finance

Ministry of Textiles

Ministry of Commerce and Industry

Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises

Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways

Ministry of Railways

Ministry of Agro and Rural Industries

Ministry of Small-Scale Industries

Ministry of Mines

Ministry of Coal

Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports

Ministry of Tourism & Culture

Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs

Ministry of Water Resources

Ministry of Human Resource Development (Department of Education & Literacy)

Ministry of Urban Development

Ministry of Steel

Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers

Ministry of Power

Ministry of New & Renewable Energy

Ministry of Information & Broadcasting

Ministry of Communication & Information Broadcasting

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare

Ministry of Earth Sciences

Ministry of Company Affairs

Ministry of Panchayati Raj

Ministry of Environment & Forests

Ministry of Development of North-Eastern region

Ministry of Home Affairs

Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions

Ministry of Planning

Ministry of Food & Public Distribution

Ministry of Consumer Affairs

Ministry of External Affairs

Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation

Ministry of Civil Aviation

Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation

Ministry of Labor & Employment

Ministry of Food Processing Industries

India’s parliamentary system, originally designed to give voice to its diverse populace, has now been distorted to give the greatest rent to those who can command and deliver the largest number of votes. A small regional party leader who commands barely a half dozen parliamentarians can demand choice portfolios and get them. Now, it is not the Prime Minister, but regional bosses – heads of regional Political Patronage Pyramids – who get to decide on the Cabinet ministers. Southern political Supremo Karunanidhi (who idolized Joseph Stalin so much that he named his son and successor after him) got the Telecom ministry and then got to decide who he sent in and how much money to steal (about $31 billion) from public coffers. No thought is given as to the suitability of that person to that role, nor is any ongoing performance assessment made or any feedback loops initiated. A ministry is given with the implicit understanding that large scale graft will occur and the Prime minister and his central government will look the other way as long as the shaky parliamentary coalition is supported.

The entire sham is repeated at every state and regional level. Smaller pyramids are created with no thought to experience or expertise in that sector. Parliamentary support is exchanged for a spot at the smorgasbord of India's bureacracy. With votes as the currency of this eco-system, it remains vital to permanently sustain large enough numbers of voters destitute enough to be easily bought. Democracy fails in its core corrective function.

In the ensuing feeding frenzy, outcomes that have steadily degenerated over the last 60 years; most ministries that oversee public welfare are doing far more damage by functioning than they would do by ceasing to exist. The Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation, in its 2007 report to Parliament, declared that it assisted a grand total of 469 poor people in the three years between 2003 and 2006.

India’s Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has overseen a complete collapse of sport in the country. Indian Men’s Field Hockey, Gold medal winners at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, failed to even qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, India, 20% of humanity, earned only 3 medals out of a total 958. At the 2012 Summery Olympics, India won 4 bronze medals, 2 silver, and zero gold.