CENTRE FOR POLICY RESEARCH - GOVERNANCE
News:
● The
Government of India suspended the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA)
license of the Centre for Policy Research (CPR).
About CPR:
● The
CPR was established in 1973 as a think
tank with the mission to contribute to “a
more robust public discourse about the issues that impact life in India.”
● Over
the years it has cultivated a reputation as one of the country’s premier public
policy think tanks and “a non-profit, non-partisan, independent institution
dedicated to conducting research that contributes to high quality scholarship,
better policies”, according to its website.
● Its
headquarters is located in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.
Works of CPR:
● The
CPR covers a broad range of subjects, with experts from different fields
working under its aegis to conduct policy-oriented research.
● A
lot of the work CPR does is oriented towards helping policy-makers and
authorities to make better, more well-informed decisions. For instance,
“Renewing India’s Air Quality Management Strategy in the Shadow of COVID-19” by
Santosh Harish was published in 2021 and provides an overview of the current
state of knowledge and the governance framework on air quality management in
India.
● The
CPR also conducts research on specific
government schemes and policies in order to improve them or learn from them
in the future.
● The
scholarship is technical and oriented towards addressing tangible problems and
concerns.
How is CPR funded?
● The
CPR is recognized as a not-for-profit
society by the Government of India, and contributions to it are tax-exempt. According to its 2021-22
annual report, CPR received government grants from the Indian Council for
Social Science Research (ICSSR), Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of
Meghalaya and Government of Andhra Pradesh.
● Beyond
government funding, the CPR also receives grants from a variety of domestic and
international sources. Some of these sources are the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation (USA), William & Flora Hewlett Foundation (USA), Macarthur
Foundation (USA), UNICEF, and the World Bank.
Registration under FCRA:
● The
FCRA is applicable to all associations,
groups and NGOs which intend to receive foreign donations. It is mandatory for all such NGOs to register
themselves under the FCRA.
● FCRA
registrations are granted to individuals
or associations that have definite cultural, economic, educational, religious,
and social programmes.
● The
Ministry of Home Affairs makes
inquiries through the Intelligence Bureau into the antecedents of the applicant
and accordingly processes the application.
● The
MHA is required to approve or reject the application within 90 days - failing
which it is expected to inform the NGO of the reasons for the same.
● Once
granted, FCRA registration is valid for
five years.
● NGOs
are expected to apply for renewal within
six months of the date of expiry of registration. In case of failure to
apply for renewal, the registration is deemed to have expired.
When is a registration suspended or canceled?
● The
government reserves the right to cancel
the FCRA registration of any NGO if it finds it to be in violation of the
Act.
● Registration
can be canceled for a range of reasons including, if “in the opinion of the
Central Government, it is necessary for the public interest to cancel the
certificate”.
● Once
the registration of an NGO is canceled, it is not eligible for re-registration for three years.