Indian NGOs: Learning to Walk the Line between Social Responsibility and Commercial Success

Introduction
NGO means Non governmental organization. These are legally constituted organizations in which government representatives are not present in members of organization and may or may not be funded by the government. Sometimes, the government provides entire funds, while in some occasions government partially funds the NG0s. The term "non-governmental organization" has no generally agreed legal definition, is usually applied only to organizations that pursue some wider social aim that has few political aspects, but that are not overtly political organizations such as political parties. The main objective of NGOs is to provide social justice, development and human rights. It generally provides services directly to local community. In many jurisdictions, these types of organization are called "civil society organizations.' or referred to by other names. NGOs are defined by the World Bank as "private organizations that pursue activities to relieve suffering, promote the interests of the poor, protect the environment, provide basic social services, or undertake community development. The autonomous, non-profit and politically unaffiliated organizations advance a particular cause or set of causes in the public interest. The range of causes on which an NGO can focus is unlimited, but a cardinal principle is that NGOs operate in a manner consistent with the bye-laws or trust deed as the case may be, and objectives or causes for which they receive funds. A non-governmental organization (NGO) is not part of a government and is therefore typically independent of governments. Although the definition can technicallyinclude for-profit corporations under certain circumstances, the term is generally restricted to social, cultural, leg., and environmental advocacy groups having goals that are primarily non-commercial. NGOs are usually non-profit organizations that gain at least a portion of their funding from private sources. They can however, and sometimes do, go in for commercial activities to raise resources and sustain themselves but the profits of these activities cannot he distributed to members as dividend and has instead to be retained in the organizations to further the interest and objects of the beneficiaries. Because the label "NGO" is considered too broad by some, as it might
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cover anything that is non-governmental, many NGOs now prefer the term private voluntary organization (POV). Though voluntary associations of citizens have existed throughout history, NGOs along the lines seen today, especially on the international level, have developed in the past two centuries. One of the first such organizations, the International Committee of the Red Cross, was founded in 1863. The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is today the world's largest group of humanitarian NGO's. The definition of international NGO (INGO) is first given in resolution 288 (X) of ECOSOC on February 27, 1950: it is defined as 'any international organization that is not founded by an international treaty'. Globalization during the 20th century gave rise to the importance of NGOs. Now there are about 45,000 internationally operating NGOs. The remodeling processes of the welfare state have led to the rapid development of the nongovernmental sector in western countries.

History of NGO Activities in India

India has a long history of civil society based on the concepts of daana (giving) and seva (service). Voluntary organizationsorganizations that are voluntary in spirit and without profit-making objectiveswere active in cultural promotion, education, health, and natural disaster relief as early as the medieval era. They proliferated during British rule, working to improve social welfare and literacy and pursuing relief projects. During the second half of the 19th century, nationalist consciousness spread across India and self-help emerged as the primary focus of sociopolitical movements. Numerous organizations were established during this period, including the Friend-in-Need Society (1858), Prathana Samaj (1864), Satya Shodhan Samaj (1873), Arya Samaj (1875), the National Council for Women in India (1875), and the Indian National Conference (1887). The Societies Registration Act (SRA) was approved in 1860 to confirm the legal status of the growing body of non government organizations (NG0s). The SRA continues to be relevant legislation for NGOs in India, although most state governments have enacted amendments to the original version. Christian missionaries active India at this time directed their efforts toward reducing poverty and constructing hospitals, schools, roads, and other infrastructure. Meanwhile, NGOs focused their efforts on education, health, relief, and social welfare. A firm foundation for secular voluntary action in India was not laid until the Servants of India, a secular NGO, was established in I905.Mahatma Gandhi's return to India in 1916
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shifted the focus of development activities to economic self- sufficiency. His swadeshi movement, which advocated economic self-sufficiency through small-scale local production, swept through the country. Gandhi identified the root of India's problem as the poverty of the rural masses and held that the only way to bring the nation to prosperity was to develop the villages' self-reliance based on locally available resources. He also believed that voluntary action, decentralized to gram panchayats (village councils), was the ideal way to stimulate India's development. Gandhi reinvigorated civil society in India by stressing that political freedom must be accompanied by social responsibility. After independence, the Government of India increased its presence in social welfare and development but recognized the potential for civil society to supplement and complement its efforts. The first five-year Plan stated, "Any plan for social and economic regeneration should take into account the services rendered by these agencies and the state should give them maximum cooperation in strengthening their efforts." The Central Social Welfare Board was established in 1953 to promote social welfare activities and support people's participation programs through NG0s. This additional funding and recognition led to a growing body of professional NG0s. The Government of India decentralized development activities throughout the 1950s. The establishment of the National Community Development Program and the National Extension Service were early steps in this direction. Further decentralization was achieved with the introduction of the three-tier Panchayati raj system in 1958. Many farmers unions and agricultural cooperatives were founded around this time, and networking became more commonplace in civil society. In 1958, the Association for Voluntary Agencies for Rural Development (AVARD, was founded as a consortium of major voluntary agencies. International NGOs entered India in significant numbers to provide drought relief during two consecutive agricultural seasons, 1965-1966 and 1966-1967. Many of them established permanent local operations thereafter. Moreover, foreign funds began flowing to domestic NGOs in India, changing the character of civil society once more. During the 1970s the government pursued a "minimum needs" program, focusing on the basic impediments to improving the quality of life for the rural poor, such as education,
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electrical power, and health. Several governmental development agencies were established around this time, such as the People's Action for Development of India. Foreign-trained Indians entered civil society in greater numbers, leading to a professionalization of the sector. India witnessed a rapid increase in and diversification of the NGO sector as a response to the national political scenario and increasing concern about poverty and marginalization. Bo. welfare and empowerment- oriented organizations emerged during this period, and development, civil liberties, education, environment, health, and livelihood all became the focus of attention. With community participation as a defined component in a number of social sector projects during the 1970s and 1980s, NGOs began to be formally recognized as development partners of the state. Their work was increasingly characterized by grassroots interventions, advocacy at various levels, and mobilization of the marginalized to protect their rights. The process of structural adjustment begun in the early 1990s, and the more recent approach of bilateral and international donors channeling funds directly through the government, NGO networks, and large corporate NG0shave somewhat pushed peoples' organizations into the background. Small, spontaneous initiatives at the community level, as a response to social and economic exploitations at the community level, are no longer the hallmark of the NGO sector.

NGOs Today

Over the past several decades, NGOs have become major players in the field of international development. Since the mid-1970s, the NGO sector in both developed and developing countries has experienced exponential growth. From 1970 to 1985 total development aid disbursed by international NGOs increased ten-fold. In 1992 international NGOs channeled over $7.6 billion of aid to developing countries. It is now estimated that over 15 percent of total overseas development aid is channeled through NGOs. While statistics about global numbers of NGOs are notoriously incomplete, it is currently estimated that there is somewhere between 10,000 and 100,000 national NGOs in developing countries. So NGOs required new techniques and approaches for managing their essence and resources at national and International level. Today, about 1.5 million NGOs work in India (i.e., nonprofit, voluntary citizens' groups organized on a local, national, or international level). This includes temples, church., mosques, gurudwaras (sikh place of workshop), sports associations, hospitals, educational institutions, and ganeshotsavmandals (temporary structures set up to house Ganesh festival celebrations). Most NGOs in India are small and dependent on volunteers. According to a survey conducted by society for Participatory research in Asia (PRIA), 73.4% of NGOs have one or no paid staff, although across the country, more than 19 million persons work as volunteers or paid staff at an NGO. The PRIA survey also reveals that 26.5% of NGOs are engaged in religious activities, while 21.3% work in the area of community and/or social service. About one in five NGOs works in education sector, while 17.9% are active in the fields of sports and culture. Only 6.6% work in the
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health sector.The Indian Centre for Philanthropy, the Center for Advancement of Philanthropy, Charities Aid _Foundation (India), National Foundation of India, and the Society Service to Voluntary Organizations are among the nonprofit organizations that provide information resources, services, and networking opportunities to NGOs.

Types of NGOs
NGO type can be understood by orientation and level of co-operation.NGO can be classified according to the orientation as follows :

Charitable orientation; Service orientation; Participatory orientation; Empowering orientation;

Classification of NGOs by level of co-operation :

Community- Based Organization; City Wide Organization; National NGOs; International NGOs;
International Development Co-operation/Assistance Organizations: These organizations/agencies extend money/finance, materials, instruments and technical assistance to the Non-Govt. development organizations engaged in international and national development activities.

Non-Govt. Development Organizations: There are NGOs which are termed as NonGovt. development organizations engaged in planning and implement of developments projects at the grassroots levels in order to bring about positive changes of economic status of the poor in the on-going socio-economic context. There are three types of such organization such as: a) International/Foreign Non-Govt. Development Organizations: In these organizations, foreign experts and citizens work in planning, implementing and managing the projects that are funded by foreign donors. b) National Non-Govt. Development Organizations: Organizations which arc engaged in service-oriented programs/projects for education, health, population environment, as well projects for income generating. c) Grassroots Organization or Target Group: Generally, groups or people receiving or enjoying services constitute these organizations.
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The NGO can further be classified according to their main objectives and functions conducted in the country. The classification is: i. International Relief Organization: These international organizations engage themselves in relief activities directly or through other agencies. ii. Service oriented NGOs: Though there .e difference in the aims, objectives and activities, such organization can be classified according to their particular stress and attention. iii. Religions NGOs: Such NGOs work as branch. of international religions institution/organizations. iv. Income Generating NGOs: NGOs engaged in alleviating poverty of the rural poor and landless peasants by employing them in income generating farm and nonfarm activities. v. Education and Training based NGOs: Engaged in educating and training of professionals and technicians at different levels. NGOs for Health Services: Engaged in offering health services to the rural and urban people. vi. Aimless NGOs/Paper Organizations: Engaged in collecting huge amount of donations from home and abroad in the name of service but ultimately looting the amount for self-interest. There are many NG0s, which exist only on paper. Many operate under the umbrella of religious activities and to avoid taxation, some register as charitable organizations. Many NGOs do not encourage having membership rosters or indeed to have members at all because this would the latter a say in their affairs and ask difficult question about the work, activities and finances of the organization concerned. vii. Credit Disbursement NGOs: NGOs involved in various types of credit disbursement and the important sub-sector wise activities are agriculture, fisheries, food processing, small business, cottage industry, transport, housing, and health. viii. Ideology based NGOs: In Pakistan, these can be classified into Islamic and NonIslamic NG0s. The Non-Islamic NGOs can be further categorized into two groups: a. Secular capitalist and b. Socialistic NGOs
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Apart from NGO", often alternative terms are used as for example: independent sector, volunteer sector, civil society, grassroots organizations, transnational social movement organizations, private voluntary organizations, self-help organizations and non-state actors (NSA'). Non-governmental organizations are a heterogeneous group. A long list of acronyms has developed around the term "NGO. These include: BINGO, short for Business-friendly International NGO or Big International NGO; CSO, short for civil society organization; DONGO: Donor Organized NGO; ENGO: short for environmental NGO, such as Greenpeace and WWF GONGOs are government-operated NG0s, which may have been set up by governments to look like NGOs in order to qualify for outside aid or promote the interests of the government in question; INGO stands for international NGO; Oxfam, the ISPAD is an international NGO; QUANGO s are quasi-autonomous non-governmental organizations, such as the International Organization of Standardization (ISO). (The ISO is actually not purely an NGO, since its membership is by nation, and each nation is represented by what the ISO Council determines to be the 'most broadly representative' standardization body of a nation. That body might itself be a nongovernmental organization; for example, the United States is represented in ISO by the American National Standards Institute, which is independent of the federal government. However, other countries can be represented by national governmental agencies; this is the trend in Europe.) TANGO: short for technical assistance NGO; TNGO: short for transnational NGO; GSO: Grassroots Support Organization MANGO: short for market advocacy NGO USAID refers to NGOs as private voluntary organizations. However many scholars have argued that this definition is highly problematic as many NGOs are in fact state and corporate funded and managed projects with professional staff.
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Types of NGOs in India

Indian Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) can be set up under various Indian laws, and the different legal entities under which civil society organizations can register themselves are: a) Registered Societies: Societies registration Act, 1860 is a central act for registering not-for-profit organizations. Almost all the states in India have adopted (with modifications, if any) the central Act for creating state level authorities for registering various types of not-for-profit entities. According to the act any seven persons who subscribe to the Memorandum of Association (MOA) can register a society. The memorandum should include names of the society, its objectives, its names, addresses and occupations of the members subscribing to it as well as the first governing body to be constituted on registration. b) Trust: Trust can further divided into two types i. Public trust: Public trust can be created for public charitable purposes. There is no All India Level Act for setting up public charitable trusts. Some of the states in India have enacted the Public Charitable Trust Act, while most states in India does not have a trust act. An NGO can be created only under a public trust act. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have independent state level public trust acts. States like West Bengal and Bihar do not have any act to register a public trust. A trust can be registered in one state, but the same has the scope to operate in any number of states. In the state of Maharashtra and Gujarat, all organizations that are registered as 'Society' are by default also registered as Public Trust. ii. Private Trust: A private trust, created under and governed by the Indian Trusts Act of 1882, aims at managing assigned trust properties for private or religious purpose. A private trust does not enjoy the privileges and tax benefits that are available for public trust or NGOs. c) Non Profit Companies (Section 25): Conferring of corporate personality to associations that promote cultural and charitable objectives, but exempting them from the operation of some cumbersome requirements (which are essentially for
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regulation of business bodies but are difficult for compliance by non-profit companies), are the noteworthy features that are provided under the companies act, 1956. According to section 25(1): "Where it is proved to the satisfaction of the Central Government that an association is about to be formed as a limited company for promoting commerce, art, science, religion, charity or any other useful objectives, intends to apply its profits, if any, or other income in promoting its objectives, and to prohibit the payment of any dividend to its members, the Central Government may, by license, I direct that the association may be registered as a company with limited liability, without addition to its name of the word "Limited" or the words "Private Limited"

Comparison between a trust, a society and a section 25 company :

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d) Cooperative Societies: In India, cooperative societies are regarded as instruments to mobilize and aggregate community effort to eliminate layers of middlemen in any product or service supply chain hence resulting in greater benefit sharing for the grassroots farmer, worker or artisans. The Cooperative Credit Societies Act, 1904 enabled formation of cooperatives for supplying to farmers cheap credit and protect them from exploitation in the hands of the moneylenders. The cooperative act 1912 expanded the sphere of cooperation and provided for supervision by central organization. e) Multi-State Co-operative Societies (MACTS): The Multi-state Co-operative Societies Act, 2002, which substitutes the earlier statute of 1984, facilitates the incorporation of cooperative societies whose objects and functions spread over to several states. The act provides for formation of both prim, (with both individual and institution. members) and federal cooperatives (with only institutional memberships). Any application for the registration of a multi-state cooperative society, of which all the members are individuals, should be signed by at least fifty persons from each of the states concern.. In case of a society of which members are cooperative societies, it should be signed by duly authorized representative of at least five such societies registered in different states f) Trade Unions: Trade union means any combination, whether temporary or permanent, formed primarily for the purpose of regulating the relations between workmen and employers or between workmen and workmen or between employers and employers, or for imposing restrictive conditions on the conduct of any trade or business, and includes any federation of two or more Trade Unions.

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Importance of NGOs
In the last decade, non-governmental organizations (NG0s) have gained increased attention among scholars and practitioners of development. They have become increasingly important agents of the development process in many countries, in all of their main areas of work such as humanitarian relief, long-term development, policy formation and political advocacy. NGOs are commanding greater attention within civil society as vehicles for social service delivery, advocacy, and empowerment. NGOs are professionally staffed organizations aiming at contributing to the reduction of human suffering and to the development of poor countries (Streeten 1997). They do this in various ways, e.g. by funding projects, engaging in service provision and capacity building, contributing to awareness, and promoting the .1f-organization of various groups (Baccaro 2001). Meanwhile, Desai (2005) has mentioned that NGOs have an important role to play in supporting women, men and households, and expected that they can meet the welfare. She accounted some role and functions for NG0s, such as counseling and support service, awareness raising and advocacy, legal aid and microfinance. These services help the people to achieve their ability, skill and knowledge, and take control over their own lives and finally become empowered. On the other hand, Stromquist (2002) has noted three major functions for NGOs such as (1) service delivery (e.g. relief, welfare, basic skills etc.); (2) educational provision (e.g. basic skills and often critical analysis of social environments); and (3) public policy advocacy. Baccaro (2001) shows how particular NGOs can promote the organization and -empowerment" of the poor, particularly poor women, through a combination of micro-credit, awareness raising, training for group members, and other social services. Empowerment is the ability of individuals to gain control socially, politically, economically and psychologically through (1) access to information, knowledge and skills; (2) decision making; and (3) individual se1f-efficacy, community participation, and perceived control (Rappaport 1987; Zimmerman and Rappaport 1988). In the long term, the aim of NGOs is to promote sustainable community development through activities that promote capacity building and self- reliance. Langran (2002), has mentioned that NGOs through capacity building help to sustain community
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development. NGOs are often created in order to expand the capacities of people (Korten 1990). Furthermore, NGOs are praised for promoting community self-reliance and empowerment through supporting community-based groups and relying on participatory processes (Korten 1990; Clark 1991; Friedmann 1992; Fowler 1993; Edwards and Hulme 1994; Salamon 1994). On the other hand, sustainable development has emerged over the past few decades as an important paradigm for community development. However, as Bradshaw and Winn (2000) have noted, sustainability is rooted largely in an environmental approach, particularly in the industrialized countries. But, the goal of sustainable development is to find a balance between three pillars - social, economic and environment. - Of communities (Sneddon 2000). The Rio Conference interpreted sustainable development as a single process with three dimensions. In addition, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation defined it as three distinct processes, of "economic development, social development and environmental protection as interdependent and mutually reinforcing pillars" (United Nations 2002). These dimensions were originally introduced with the aim of identifying .e. in which social, economic and environmental goals are interrelated (Holmberg and Sandbrook 1992). However, these dimensions of sustainable development have done little to reduce the complexity of the concept and h. itself introduced a contradiction. Hibbard and Tang (2004), in their study in Vietnam, have noted the importance of NGOs' roles in sustainable community development. One of the roles was that NGOs balance the social, economic and environment factors in promoting sustainable development. Another important role of NGO that they discover was decentralization of the central government, which helps the local communities to acquire more power in order to make their own decisions. But, sometimes the local communities lack specialists to do professional work and resources that are important for the particular projects. In this situation, NGO assists local staff with drafting sustainable development plans that are functional under the umbrella of a central government policy. Finally, they concluded that sustainable community development is process-oriented, and it requires extensive

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community participation and relies on network to share resources, knowledge and expertise. From the literatures, it could be summarized that NGOs play an important function in promoting sustainable community development. Sustainable community development emphasizes on a balance between environmental concerns and development objectives, while simultaneously enhancing local social relationships. Sustainable communities meet the economic needs of their residents, enhance and protect the environment, and promote more humane local societies (Bridger and Luloff 1997). As Bridger (1997) has mentioned, sustainable community development includes five dimensions. The first dimension emphasizes on increasing local economic diversity. The second is self-reliance which entails the development of local markets, local production, local processing of previously imported goods, and greater cooperation among local economic entities. The third dimension involves a reduction in the use of energy, coupled with the careful management and recycling of waste products. The fourth dimension focuses on the protection and enhancement of biological diversity and careful stewardship of natural resources. Finally, the fifth dimension is related to the commitment of the sustainable communities to social justice. Through the functions of providing micro-finance, initiating capacity building and self - reliance, NGOs could promote empowerment among community members, and eventually community sustainable development.

The above figure shows the outline of the relationship between NGOs' functions, empowerment and sustainable community development. From this perspective, NGOs'
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functions in community development are, among others, develop the local production and local markets; help the community to develop the social, capital and human resources; increase the knowledge and skills; encourage people to participate in activities, and act as a network between community and systems. The involvement in these activities would lead to them become empowered, which is the output of community development. In the long run, the outcome would be sustainable community development.

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Role of NGOs in Democracy

In a democratic setup like India, an important trend that is taking place in the recent few decades is the growing involvement of NGOs in the socio-economic development of the country. The advocates of the NGO movement argue that voluntary action could be a viable alternative to state sponsored programs like IRDP, which were unable to help the rural poor. The NGOs could become a 'potent instrument for bringing about social transformation and building an egalitarian and humane society. It may be only a protest forum in the short run, but over time, it had considerable potential for effective social change' (Dantawala et. al. 1998:9). Though it was Mahatma Gandhi who had advocated voluntarism long ago and some Gandhians had been practicing it all through, the NGO movement took off in India only with the growing interest of international funding agencies with issues of the rural poor. The paradigm shift from state oriented development to market driven economy also helped in giving legitimacy to the NGO movement. With NGOs came a new language of development: empowerment, participation, participatory research appraisal (PRA), social capital etc. One of the most popular and effective programme initiated by NGOs has been the promotion of thrift societies (Dantawala et. al. 1998; Rajasekhar 1998; Khan et. al. 1989; Srivastava 1999). They have become increasingly important age. of the development process in many democratic countries, in all of their main areas of work such as humanitarian relief, long-term development, policy formation and political advocacy. NGOs have commanded greater attention within civil society as vehicles for social service delivery, advocacy, and empowerment. Niraja Jayal and Rob Jenkins together underscore how the growth of civil society has enhanced liberal aspects of India's democracy. Jayal details the explosive growth of nongovernmental organizations in a variety of arenas, highlighting that some such organizations have effectively checked autocratic tendencies in state power. Echoing critical trends in the civil society literature more broadly, Jayal correctly points out that not all NGOs work to enhance liberal aspects of democracy and that NGOs are themselves not democratically accountable. Rob Jenkins argues that the development of civil society has contributed to India's democratic deepening. The proliferation of NGOs dedicated to exposing corruption has created new mechanisms of accountability and
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provided for new avenues of coalition building. The reading aloud of official government records in localized settings, effectively auditing the veracity of such records, is just one example of how the growth in NG0s, though not an unambiguous good, has contributed to the creation of a substantively liberal state. On the whole, therefore, these authors correctly stress that the growth of civic organizations has invigorated a norm of vibrant civic engagement with the state. Despite so many benefits, only a very few NGOs get the required support and attention. The reason behind this can be the set of limitation they have due to uncontrolled nature of the organization. Most of the NGOs do not have quality manpower and the financial support. They die or become extinct within one or two years. Politic influence is another major concern in a democratic setup like India. It puts the NGOs in a dilemma and questions their "politically unaffiliated" status. When power and money are involved, corruption can also creeps in, and this gains momentum in an uncontrolled environment of NG0s. Money starts flowing out of the system, and the NGO deviates from its path. The following table compares the strengths and weaknesses of an NGO in a democratic setup.

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The Indian NGOs Scenario

In India, it was the 1970s which saw rapid growth in the formation of formally registered NGOs and the process continues to this day. Most NGOs have created their respective thematic, social group and geographical priorities such as poverty alleviation, community health, education, housing, human rights, child rights, womens rights, natural resource management, water and sanitation; and to these ends they put to practice a wide range of strategies and approaches. Primarily, their focus has been on the search for alternatives to development thinking and practice; achieved through participatory research, community capacity building and creation of demonstrable models. Many NGOs have worked hard to include children with disability in schools, end castebased stigma and discrimination, prevent child labour and promote gender equality resulting in women receiving equal wages for the same work compared to men. During natural calamities they have played an active role in relief and rehabilitation efforts, in particular, providing psycho-social care and support to the disaster affected children, women and men. NGOs have been instrumental in the formation and capacity building of farmers and producers cooperatives and womens self-help groups. Several NGOs have worked hand in hand with the Government to ensure that millions of out of school children are enrolled and continue their school education, thus making the right to education a reality. The leprosy eradication programme was spearheaded by NGOs and today only residual leprosy remains in our country. NGOs have implemented the JeevanDharaprogramme for creation of wells for safe drinking water; promoted community toilets for total sanitation, and supported the public health programs on immunisation and for eliminating tuberculosis and malaria. The much celebrated NREGA, ICDS, ICPS, Nirmal gram, and Swasthyabima of the government have their roots in the work of many NGOs. NGOs have significantly influenced the development of laws and policies on several important social and developmental issues such as the right to information, juvenile justice, ending corporal punishment in schools, anti-trafficking, forests and environment, wildlife conservation, women, elderly people, people with disability, rehabilitation and resettlement of development induced displaced people to name a few. Further, NGOs made their modest attempts to ensure the effective implementation of these laws and
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policies by conducting and disseminating findings from participatory research, budget analysis, public hearings, social audits, workshops, seminars and conferences. Summing up, it is now well established that NGOs have an important role to play in the development processes and that both the state and market need the collaboration of credible, active, and accountable NGOs. Given their connect with the grassroots realities, NGOs can and should play the game changer to pro-poor development through leadership on participatory research, community empowerment and search for development alternatives.

Effect of NGOs in Rural India Role of Non-government Organizations (NG0s) in the development process in the third world countries like India is very crucial, especially in the 21st Century. They have a greater role to play in the lives and livelihoods of the tribal and backward communities of India today. The tribal communities constitute about 7 percent of the total population in India. The tribal communities generally live in the inaccessible hilly and forest regions. The economy is largely self-sufficient, unstructured and non-specialized. Their social system is simple. This situation has however changed with the process of new developments in India. Industrial and mining complexes have been established making the tribal economy quite uneven. Coupled with it the government policies and programs also alienated the tribal from natural resources such .land, forest produce, etc. (Sharma 1977). Eswarappa (2007) in his recent paper, 'Development and Change among Sugalis, tried to portray that the impact of developmental efforts made by both the government and non- government agencies is to bring desired socio- economic changes in the lives of the marginalized tribal communities in Andhra Pradesh. Further, Baviskar (2001) has rightly mentioned that the decline of the State is accompanied by increasing attention towards civil society institutions. Among the social groups .d associations of various kin.that are considered to make up civil society, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have become especially prominent in the last two decades. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have emerged around the world - notably in the developing world as major players in the developmental action (Meyer 1996: 453). Given the profound implications of NGO involvement in development, there is a great need to essentially examine the changing relations between NG0s, State agencies, multilateral and bilateral funding institutions, and other social groups. The NGO sector in India is characterized by tremendous diversity and heterogeneity. Ignoring this diversity, unfounded generalizations are 22

often put forward .d unfair comments and criticisms are offered. NGOs differ from one another in size, in funding, in functions; in the levels at which they operate; and in organizational structures, goals and membership (cited in Baviskar 2001: 4-5). In India, there are 14,000 NGOs registered under the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act. In all, there may be over 30,000 NGOs in India. The close collaboration between academics and the NGOs practical work is o. of the reasons for the absence of rigorous studies. Social scientists have close links with NG0s, and since many NGOs operate in the cross-disciplinary space between academic research and activist intervention, they offer to academics many opportunities to pursue their work into the domain of non-academic practice. At the micro level, the NGOs are beset with problems relating to coordination of various elements that necess.ly intervene and intersect the areas of operation. The. Include human elements discharging the duties of the functions, location of the institutions, power politics and natural local conditions. There is a complex relationship of these elements. Thus, it is here the introduction of Right to Information Act has relevance to understand the problems better and make beneficiaries more involved. Civil society organizations have expressed a genuine interest in liaising and working towards building strategic partnerships with government where possible to assist in the implementation process. Civil society is also likely to take a lead in raising public awareness about the new law (Devasher 2005). The paper by KasiEswarappa suggests that in addition to the involvement of the NG0s, there is a need of having association with the government partners to make more effective of the implementation of the Right to Information as a basic means to achieve the desired goals of the marginal tribal development in India.

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Role Of NGO'S IN Sustainable Development

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have played a major role in pushing for sustainable development at the international level. Campaigning groups have been key drivers of inter-governmental negotiations, ranging from the regulation of hazardous wastes to a global ban on land mines and the elimination of slavery. But NGOs are not only focusing their energies on governments and inter-governmental processes. With the retreat of the state from a number of public functions and regulatory activities, NGOs have begun to fix their sights on powerful corporations - many of which can rival entire nations in terms of their resources and influence. Aided by advances in information and communications technology, NGOs have helped to focus attention on the social and environmental externalities of business activity. Multinational brands have been acutely susceptible to pressure from activists and from NGOs eager to challenge a company's labour, environmental or human rights record. Even those businesses that do not specialize in highly visible branded goods are feeling the pressure, as campaigners develop techniques to target downstream customers and shareholders. Such a stakeholder approach takes into account the effects of business activity - not just on shareholders, but on customers, employees, communities and other interested groups. There are many visible manifestations of this shift. One has been the devotion of energy
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and resources by companies to environmental and social affairs. Companies are taking responsibility for their externalities and reporting on the impact of their activities on a range of stakeholders. Much of the credit for creating these trends can be taken by NGOs. But how should the business world react to NGOs in the future? Should companies batten down the hatches and gird themselves against attacks from hostile critics? Or should they hold out hope that NGOs can sometimes be helpful partners? Although it is often assumed that NGOs are charities or enjoy non-profit status, some NGOs are profit-making organizations such as cooperatives or groups which lobby on behalf of profit-driven interests. For example, the World Trade Organization's definition of NGOs is broad enough to include industry lobby groups such as the Association of Swiss Bankers and the International Chamber of Commerce. Even then, the NGO community remains a diverse constellation. Some groups may pursue a single policy objective - for example access to AIDS drugs in developing countries or press freedom. Others will pursue more sweeping policy goals such as poverty eradication or human rights protection. However, one characteristic these diverse organizations share is that their non-profit status means they are not hindered by short-term financial objectives. Accordingly, they are able to devote themselves to issues which occur across longer time horizons, such as climate change, malaria prevention or a global ban on landmines.

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Role Of NGO'S In Education :

Non-governmental organizations working in education in India are professional resource centers and innovators able to reach children who are educationally disadvantaged. The Indian government could improve the effectiveness of primary education by increasing its collaboration with such organizations. NGOs extend education to underprivileged children in India and develop innovations that improve the quality of primary education. In this study of six NGOs working with school-age children in India, Jagannathan shows the potential benefits of a government-NGO alliance to achieve universal primary education. The author emphasizes several areas in which collaboration can be particularly fruitful. Targeting underserved children The government could support the efforts of NGOs to bring out-of-school children into schools through timely supply of teachers, classroom space, and other resources. Targeted action is needed to reach different types of out-of-school childrenthose who work, those who live in slums, those on the street, those who are members of tribes or of
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migrant families, and those who live in places without schools. To encourage young, first-generation learners to stay in school requires a supportive and nurturing environment. To help make learning interesting and worthwhile for such children, teachers in government schools could receive special training in new methods developed by NGOs. Enhancing quality: improving the quality of education requires working closely with key agents of change, such as teachers, school heads, school management committees, and village education committees. To develop a cadre of trainers for primary school teachers, teacher training institutes would do well to evaluate and learn from NGO models for teacher training. Teachers need a range of knowledge and skills to teach underprivileged children effectively. Here again, NGO models would be a useful tool for teacher training institutes. NGOs and the government could collaborate in developing appropriate and flexible learning assessment tools, in line with innovative teaching and learning methods. But without safeguards, large-scale replication by the government of such NGO innovations as the alternative school and the voluntary teacher could lower the quality of education.Government-NGO links The government and NGOs will need to share a common vision on how to achieve universal primary education if India is to reach this goal

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Role Of NGO'S In Women Development

NGOs, moreover, recognize that gender inequalities in many different sectors that are not readily identified as concerned with health can have an adverse effects on womens health eg Non-involvement of women in decision-making on resource allocation for the health sector results in decisions being taken by men who may not take into account the kinds of health services that only women will need. High maternal and infant mortality rates in particular can be attributed to the lack, or defective distribution of, resources in the health sector; Discrimination against girl children (a) before birth through pre-natal sex selection; (b) at birth through infanticide and (c) during childhood through neglect and son preference, compounded by their unfair share of food and of domestic chores, can lead to anaemia, malnutrition and stunting of growth; Widespread and largely unreported prevalence of violence against women,
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including psychological and sexual abuse can cause lasting damage to their health and is not infrequently fatal; Womens bodies are far more susceptible to infection by sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) including HIV/AIDS, and the risk of infection is compounded by their inability to insist upon safe sex. The associated complications include infertility and even death. Unfair share of family income received by women and girls, together with their reduced opportunities for education and training, and consequential inability to obtain gainful employment, may force them to resort to commercial sex, and increased exposure to risk of contracting STDs or HIV/AIDS Early arranged marriages, a practice over which the girls concerned have little or no control, can lead to too early and unspaced pregnancies with associated health risks; Cultural practices, which preclude womens rights to make their own decisions, such as female genital mutilation and widow inheritance, can have a serious and long term effects on their health.

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Benefits of NGO

An NGO is a non-governmental organization that is driven and task-oriented by individuals with one common interest. NGOs are usually structured around specific issues like health, human rights or environment. An NGO provides expertise and analysis and thus assists in monitoring international agreements.

Provide important local action NGOs are very important since they offer an organization for local communication, action and also distributing resources when there are no existing local organizations. An NGO provides a mechanism that could possibly work where the government has failed. It supports grass roots initiatives as well as recognizing and responding to the realities of the local people. Cheaper to implement NGOs are actual non-profit organizations; various projects can be achieved without having to use the government money. This is because there are many private donors who support the NGOs and this means that there will never be a lack of resources.

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NGOs provide a good alternative to creating mass access structures. These mass access structures are extremely cumbersome, unreliable and costly. Better communication NGOs have the capability of communicating at all levels. This means that they can easily interact with the local people and relay their messages to top levels of the government.

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Indian NGOs: Learning to Walk the Line between Social Responsibility and Commercial Success
Research Study In rain-starved villages in the remote interiors of India where subsistence farming has long been the norm, farmers have been driven to debt and death by the vagaries of the weather. Uncertain monsoons have forced many farmers to choose between migration and abject poverty. Muniyappa was one such farmer. Maintaining his 1.5 acre banana farm in the rural districts of Bangalore was becoming a struggle, one he was ready to give up for urban life. What changed his mind was a product called KB Drip, an irrigation system that ensured controlled and year-round access to water. The product was developed by IDEI, the New Delhi-based Indian arm of International Development Enterprises, a non-profit in Lakewood, Colorado, that aims to use market principles as it works to help rural farm families improve their agricultural productivity. SumitaGhose, founder and CEO of Rangsutra, a Gurgaon company that focuses on livelihood issues of rural artisans and farmers, started the company 15 years ago as a nongovernmental organization (NGO). But over time, she decided the NGO model didnt work best for Rangsutra and turned it into a business. Says Ghose: Ownership is a very big motivating factor, and we decided to start a company with artisans and farmers as shareholders. IDEI and Rangsutra are part of a growing breed of nonprofits and other Indian entities working for the underprivileged that have become business-savvy and embraced modern management methods. India has always been a fertile ground for social issues of all hues. Its rampant poverty, unemployment, disease and illiteracy have drawn voluntary organizations and financial support from philanthropists, charities and religious trusts. That old order is changing. Social commitment is no longer the preserve of voluntary workers. Conventional business and management metrics are being bundled into a package with unconventional means of finance to provide unique solutions for large social problems. NGOs and their financial sponsors who are making the transition from a charity mode to a professionally run model in an attempt to grasp the nature and extent of the changes underway. In the emerging NGO landscape, scale is important and so is
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sustainability. And both depend on an innovative and steady flow of funds. IDEI produced a Bollywood-style film to promote the $30 KB Drip and convince farmers about the benefits of drip irrigation. It has so far sold innovative irrigation products to more than 85,000 farmers in India. It is one of the many companies backed by Acumen Fund, a global non-profit venture fund based in New York City, and part of the Funds $1.4 million water portfolio. VarunSahni, the Hyderabad-based country manager of Acumen Fund in India, says his fund chose to back IDEI because, we look [to support] ventures that are going to have lasting social impact. Life as a corporate entity is proving to be more bountiful for Rangsutra. Its artisan shareholders invest an initial Rs. 1,000 each ($22) and have a say in the companys operations. In its first year (2005-06), Rangsutra managed to break even with revenues of Rs. 26 lakh ($56,500). We are planning to go over Rs. 1 crore this year ($218,000), says Sumita. Rangsutra is supported by Aavishkaar Venture Funds, which is described by its CEO Vineet Rai as a regular commercial fund that wants to invest in businesses that make money with a social commitment. The lines between for-profit and non-profit ventures are beginning to blur. The focus everywhere, not just in India, is on building sustainable development models. There is also an increasing realization that the traditional models have had a limited impact on the problems they sought to resolve. A glaring example in India is the education sector. Over the years, there has been sustained government intervention through programs like the SarvaShikshaAbhiyan (mass literacy movement) that aim to put every child in school. Lots of NGOs have been working in the sector for decades. And even though there are instances of remarkable achievements by individual NGOs, observers say these efforts have yet to translate into a significant nationwide impact. A survey conducted in 2003 by Pratham, a Mumbai NGO active in the citys slums and backed by Indian private bank ICICI Bank, is revealing. The survey says the percentage of children in the country who can read nothing and those who can read only the alphabet is about 52%; 40% drop out before completing primary school; and 11% of the children do not enter school. We realize that a single experiment is not going to make a difference, says Usha Rane, director-curriculum at Pratham Resource Centre. At
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Pratham, we think like the government. We think mass.

Scale Matters
The majority opinion within the social development sector is that it is not enough to create isolated models of excellence. As Rane explains, It is necessary to create a mass movement. Pratham operates out of 14 states. In the 10 years of its existence, it has developed reading and mathematics kits that are being used to teach the basic concepts to unlettered children. Nearly 1.6 lakh children have benefited from the program in the last three years. Like Pratham, many NGOs are working scale into their operations. MuthuVelayuthan who has been involved with migration and livelihood issues in the villages of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, has set up a rural production and retail network under the brand Aaharam. He says that his work in the villages showed him the tremendous potential that is locked up in the Indian rural framework.

Student-centric Education
At the University of Delaware, educators are no longer thinking about how they want to teach students. Instead, they are focusing on how students want to learn. He developed Aaharam as a supply network that organizes small self help groups into a federation and links that to a producers cooperative. That cooperative in turn processes the agricultural produce into a range of agro products such as spices, pulp and juice. It also retails these in the rural market. In its first year, Aaharam reached out to 1,000 families and created an inter-state platform of 160 federations. Its current monthly turnover is over Rs. 3 lakh ($6,500), and it is expanding its network of states and federations at great speed. Our mandate, says Velayuthan is to promote traditional markets. Aaharam, like several such organizations, walks the line between social responsibility and commercial success. It applies corporate marketing and business strategies to further the interest of a marginalized population. And in the process, it builds economies of scale into its operations. Devashri Mukherjee, the Mumbai-based director of venture programs at Ashoka: Innovators for the Public, a global association of social entrepreneurs based in Arlington,
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Virginia, points to another example: Nidaan, a company run by Arbind Singh in Bihar. Singh focuses on the very poor and marginalized sections of society in one of Indias most backward states. He organizes them into co-operatives and links them into a marketing group that not only protects their rights but also guides them to making financially sound decisions with respect to sales and production. What emerges from these experiences is an innovative chain of scale, professional management and funding support that links these organizations in a web of sustainable growth. Scale increases the bargaining power of groups. A professional management team sharpens focus and enhances efficiency. And finance works in two ways: as a catalyst that helps build the other links in the chain and as a growth pill that creates sustainable models out of small beginnings.

Clicking on the Right Links

Traditionally, fund support has been a key imponderable for NGOs. Since most NGOs were and many still are primarily dependent on grants and donations, they faced the constant threat of their money resources drying up. There are two ways in which the sector is getting around this problem. One is through the well documented rise of micro finance institutions (MFIs). Micro credit has had its successes and failures, but MFIs have helped significantly increase awareness and interest in the rural sector. The other development is the emergence of social venture funds such as Aavishkaar and Acumen and the development of organizations that link donors to NGOs such as Give Foundation of San Jose and Kiva of San Francisco both are active in India.

Exploring New Organizational Models

On the one hand, these developments have deepened the financial market for the social sector. On the other, they have forced NGOs to break out of the traditional charity models that they were built upon. Says VinaySomani who has set up Karmayog, a Mumbai-based B2B for NGOs, Outside funding agencies bring in best practices, force NGOs to become more transparent and lead the entire sector to a system where self sustainability becomes a specified goal.
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Finance, along with scale and professional management practices, is creating a network of sustainable organizations. The Aaharam network is illustrative. Velayuthan experimented with other forms of social intervention before he decided on a group-based income generation model that according to him seemed to be the answer to rural poverty and migration issues. Velayuthan was not the first to try out this model, but he designed it with commercial and contemporary management practices. He used money from microfinance institutions to set up a company, set specific production and sales targets (for example: the amount of mango pulp to be sold in a month) and ensured that the company scaled up within a given period of time. He also worked to build strong managerial skills among his team by organizing monthly meetings and routine interactions with private industry. Aaharams goal is to address food, nutrition and income security of producers from resource-poor areas. It largely works with rural women, taps into their expertise to make a wide range of agro products, and helps them market these through a company within a specific district or zone. We wanted to stop migration [out of rural areas], and the only way to do that was to create reliable income sources during lean agricultural months, says Velayuthan, whose initial funding came from MFIs. We looked at five broad areas where this expertise could be used, and classified these as neem, tamarind, medicinal plants, traditional crafts and charcoal. Velayuthan says he faced his biggest hurdle in setting up the company; next came the first milestone of breaking even. Aaharam charges its members a fee. This serves as working capital for the company. It also seeks out marketing and retail tie-ups that would bring in funds for expansion and business development. It already has a tie-up with the Mumbai-based Parle group for the sale of mango pulp and has recently entered into a contract with Bharat Petroleum for producing fuel pellets from agro-waste. Aaharam is only one of the instances of the work being done in the rural sector. Says VineetRai of Aavishkaar, The entire rural space has come alive in the past few years. There is a huge pipeline and we cant respond to all of them. When he started out in 2002, things were very different. There were not many projects that we could invest in at the time. We used to get about two applications a month then. We are now getting an application a day.
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Forming Networking Platforms and Communities

Rangsutra is a company that Aavishkaar supports. It has, within a year of being set up, established a small export market and a link with urban retailers such as FABIndia for the linen and hand embroidered clothes it makes. Says SumitaGhose, It is a difficult process, but we have learned to get out of the NGO mindset. Managing cash flows was a unique experience, but it has helped us focus and think our strategies through. Another example is LabourNet. Run by Solomon J. P., it started out as an organization that looked after the rights of construction workers. It has evolved into a complete database of construction workers in and around Bangalore that links industry and laborers and facilitates training programs targeted at the construction workers. We charge a fee from the company and the workers. We also offer our services to companies that want to train the workers, and that becomes a steady revenue stream. LabourNet helps the workers get medical and other workplace benefits and works with the companies to enhance productivity. The network has tremendous community contact, which opens other doors. LabourNet has won contracts with Bosch to market the latters tools to construction workers; with microfinance companies; and with a waterproofing company that wants construction workers to use its products. Says Solomon, Workers get these products cheap because they are buying in bulk; the water-proofing company benefits as it gets bulk orders, and we get the funds to run our network.

The Individual Makes Way for the Organization

Most of these organizations are also developing professional management teams to run their daily operations. That is vastly different from the earlier NGO model of centralized decision making that was usually dependent on a charismatic founder or a committed charity organization. This is partly due to the nature of the projects being planned and the increased volume of funds flowing into the sector. Says VarunSahni of Acumen, We dont invest in an individual. We look for an organization. Acumen representatives are part of the beneficiary organizations management board and participate in the decisionmaking.
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Professional participation is welcomed by people from within and outside the social sector. Says KarmayogsSomani, whose portal aims to connect NGOs with those who want to fund, help or seek their help, We want to ensure that the NGO sector has access to trained and educated professionals. For instance, Karmayog has been working on civic issues in the city of Mumbai and has effectively used systematic networking between lawyers, academics and engineers to initiate dialogue between citizens and the local municipal corporation. Several donor agencies are also driving NGOs to inject professional management approaches. Says Venkat Krishnan of GiveIndia, part of Give Foundation, For us, the driving force is empowering both NGOs and donors. By allowing NGOs to state what they want support for, we are allowing them to focus on their missions and strategies the way they wish to. And by allowing donors to choose which projects they want to donate to, we are ensuring that there is an automatic market pressure to encourage efficiency and effectiveness.

The Flip Side of Getting Business-like

While these are sound and logical arguments, there is of course a flip side. Professional management, scale and sustainability may well be the way to go for the social sector, but not all socially relevant projects lend themselves to a market-oriented rigor. India does not have a social security network like many developed countries. It often falls upon the voluntary sector to look after the marginalized sections of society such as abused children and women, the poor, the mentally challenged and other underprivileged sections of society. Funds are hard to come by for these projects as they do not fit the new mold. The challenge going forward is for this segment of the social sector to redefine the rules.

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Conclusion
NGOs are organisations within the civil society that work on the not -for-profit approach in the space which exists between the family (household), market and state. It is made up of several types of formal voluntary organisations, where people based on community, neighbourhood, workplace and other connections form their association to participate in actions for their own collective interests or for larger social good. Those NGOs which are working at the global arena, across several countries are termed as international NGOs. Many NGOs have worked hard to include children with disability in schools, end caste-based stigma and discrimination, prevent child labour and promote gender equality resulting in women receiving equal wages for the same work compared to men. Thus NGOs and their activities focusing particularly on education, health and general awareness of woman and children.

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Bibliography
"India: More NGOs, than schools and health centres". OneWorld.net. July 7, 2010. Retrieved 2011-10-07. "First official estimate: An NGO for every 400 people in India". The Indian Express. July 7, 2010 inspad.org McCormick, John. "The Role of Environmental NGOs in International Regimes". Books.google.com. Retrieved 2011-12-20. Keck and Sikkink. "Environmental Advocacy Networks". Books.google.com. Retrieved 2011-12-20.

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