India must support NGOs: German envoy

Germany on Thursday asked India to support the NGOs, scores of which are facing punitive action from the Narendra Modi government, and said there should be transparency on the part of authorities as well as civil society groups.

The remarks by German Ambassador Michael Steiner came a day after US envoy Richard Verma hit out at the government for punitive actions against the NGOs.

“NGOs are doing impressive work in India. The country can be proud of having these NGOs. I think the fundamental approach should be to support their work. I share the view of those Indian friends and those also in the government who say that we should support them,” Steiner said on the sidelines of an event here.

To buttress his point, the Ambassador cited the example of Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi’s NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan work.
“NGOs enrich the society. One of your best representatives in this field recently won the Nobel prize. I think India should be proud of the rich variety of NGOs active here,” he said.

Steiner also underlined the need for “clarity and transparency” from the government as well as from the NGOs. “I think the best situation is if you have transparency on one hand and appreciation on the other.”

US Ambassador Richard Verma had on Wednesday expressed concern on the regulatory action against some NGOs.

Source:: Indian Express