NGOs in India

Non-Governmental Organisations or NGOs, as they are commonly called are

• citizen based
• voluntary organisations
• outside the grasp of government
• that works for humanitarian purpose on not-for-profit motive

They constitute an important arm of civil society. Some notable examples of desi NGOs

• Karuna Trust - Universal access to Health Care
• Pratham - Education (prepares the famous ASER report)
• DHAN Foundation - Innovations for Inclusive Development
• PRADAN - Sustainable livelihood in villages.
• Sightsavers - FI for visually challenged
• GUIDE - study of understanding and addressing environmental, ecological and social problems.+ promoting sustainable development in arid/semi-arid regions of the state

Need of NGOs 

• they have strong grass-root presence & know-how of local issues
• professional + proven mettle. 
• Even UN recognizes their role in development & promotes governments to seek their active cooperation 
• LPG reform necessitated minimalist state for better governance
• Voice of Voiceless

Thus, they play a catalytic role in development.

Some challenges posed by NGOs in recent times : 

• Rapid proliferation in NGOs count coupled with poor registration ratio.
• Tax avoidance by non-filing of annual returns (IT Act) e.g. Greenpeace in 2015
• Non compliance with Foreign Contribution Regulatory Act (FCRA) despite large source of revenue being foreign donations
• Difficulty in National Integration : In 2014, IB(Intelligence Bureau) highlighted NGOs as threat to internal security 
• Anti-development - they are also seen to propagandize protest against Nuclear power plants, mining activity, dam construction , GM crops etc thus thwarting development measures.
• Cherry picking "Cause" on donor preference e.g. only few involved in nuclear disarmament, failure in providing justice to Bhopal gas tragedy causalities. further, French donated NGOs are usually soft on maoist.
• Fund diversion - but utilizing for intended purpose

Thus, many of NGOs are also seen to play obstructionist role in development.

Action taken by Government in recent past : 

• NGOs brought under ambit of Lokpal
• cancellation of registration of NGO, blacklisting of activists, freezing of bank accounts of those violating law.
• NITI Aayog maintains DARPAN portal for registration of NGOs/VOs

Criticism of government action : 

• stifling voice of NGOs who have rather highlighted governments flaws

So what's the long term solution ? 

• Cash flow to NGOs need regulatory law as suggested by SC
• ARC report - those receiving substantial public funds be brought under PCA,1988 & RTI,2005
• Implementation of S. Vijay Kumar Panel(2017) suggested measures
• Modernize registration procedures
• Ensure seameless operation of provision of IT Act & FCRA
• Reduce need for a physical interface b/w NGOs & public officials
• A 3-tier monitoring system for NGOs receiving Central fund
• Details of NGOs should be available as searchable database information

To conclude, NGOs are indispensable devices in India's development pathway and achieving targets set under SDG & Paris Climate deal. There is urgent need for a framework law to lightly regulate NGOs in India.