Evaluating the Relevance of Good Governance Parameters in Acceptance of Cultural Policies: A Case of Heritage TDR at Ahmedabad.

Good governance is one of the significant factors in successful implementation and acceptance of any project. Although the notion of good governance is still in its nascent stages in Indian polity, many of the government institutions are gradually moving toward it. Due to the lack of various good governance parameters, numerous government policies and schemes fail to attain the desired impacts. One such example is the Heritage Transferable of Development Rights (HTDR) at Ahmedabad, India.HTDR is an incentive mechanism introduced in 2015 aiming to support the conservation drive of the private heritage homes within the walled city of Ahmedabad. But, according to various sources, even after seven years from its implementation the program has failed to make inroads. Thus, the research aims to understand the reason for the low acceptance of HTDR by studying its implementation through the prism of good governance parameters and the efficiency of service delivery.The study was conducted through a mixed-method research approach involving quantitative closed-ended survey with heritage property residents, to understand the current scenario of good governance parameters, and a semi-structured interview with few selected respondents within the walled city of Ahmedabad for in-depth understanding of the reasons behind them. With reference to the good governance parameters, the current governance system scores considerably low on community engagement, transparency, accountability, and participation in decision-making and implementation. Simultaneously, the respondents mention a lack of sufficient government mechanisms to generate awareness about HTDR, as well as inefficient service delivery and implementation of HTDR. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]