Archive for July, 2009
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Politics, technology & accountability II
Posted on July 27, 2009 | No Comments“To be ruled is to be kept an eye on, inspected, spied on, regulated, indoctrinated, sermonized, listed and checked off, estimated, appraised, censured, ordered about…to be ruled is at every operation, transaction, movement, to be noted, registered, counted, priced, admonished, prevented, reformed, redressed, corrected”. Proudhon quoted by James Scott in Seeing like a state. The power of information is often used by those in powerful positions to control others. The right to information movement inverts this principle and turns the gaze on those in positions of power by making their actions visible and thus amenable to democratic control. Sharing information... -
Politics, technology & accountability I
Posted on July 26, 2009 | No CommentsIs accountability a political problem on which technology cannot have an impact? Some thoughts. -
Usability: Giving information is not enough
Posted on July 16, 2009 | No CommentsData, data everywhere, not a bit to use: Why the Budget website is informative but nearly useless, and how to make it usable The Government of India (GoI) has an informative website with all budget speeches and the complete set of budget proposals. Consider these simple questions: 1. Which department got the highest outlay? 2. What has happened to expenditure on child-related schemes over the last 10 years? 3. Which states are getting money for laying roads? 4. Which states have not used allotted money for primary education? 5. Do reserved constituencies get less allocation? These are reasonable questions people... -
8 Principles for open government data & beyond
Posted on July 16, 2009 | No CommentsIn an age of digital information, how should government publish electronic data in keeping with high standards of right to information. -
Will the Unique ID project improve accountability?
Posted on July 5, 2009 | 3 CommentsImproving accountability depends on political and social initiatives, and not technological solutions. But technology can shape society and politics in limited ways. This article looks briefly at how the Unique id project can help in improving accountability of the government to people in India.
