We encounter public administration everywhere. It is with us, as has been observed, ‘from cradle to grave’. Public administration, simply put, is all about knowledge and technique of administering. It is a cooperative human effort to achieve predetermined administrative goals and objectives. Public administration is made up of two words, public and administration. Public includes all the activities carried out directly or indirectly by the administrative apparatus of the government.
The word ‘administer’ is derived from the Latin words ‘ad’ and ‘ministare’ meaning ‘to minister’, ‘to serve’, or ‘to manage’. Woodrow Wilson spoke of public administration as a “detailed and systematic application of law. Every application of law is an act of administration”.
In the words of L.D. White, “the art of administration is the direction, coordination, and control of many persons to achieve some purpose or objective of public administration. It consists of all those operations having for their purpose the fulfilment or enforcement of public policy”. Administrative structure is a planned design.
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It stands for the relatively fixed pattern of relationships among the various parts of the organisation. These relationships lead to the formation of the structure that is intricately connected with a systematic decision-making process.
Here, the structure refers to the established pattern of relationship in an organisation and process refers to the functional aspect of the formal arrangement. An organisation may be public or private; but it is believed that no organisation can match public administration in the range, variety and scale of functions.
Thus, administration is an activity, which demands correct analysis and accurate orientation to achieve the objectives of the organisation, and meet the needs of the people in an efficient manner.
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The origin of the discipline of public administration can be traced to Wilson’s essay on dichotomy of politics and administration. But we have come a long way since then. Now, there is a lot of stress on public administration economics union and also on the closeness of public administration with management principles.
The growing emphasis on administration and politics union recasts the relationship of public administration with the state and society. The study of public administration is no longer inward-looking. It does not merely include bureaucratic structures and processes. The objective is not to look for the ‘one best way’ of doing a job.
The changing scenario has made public administration more multidisciplinary with administrative behaviour and citizen’s participation as its important components. New researches in the area since 1950s have brought public administration face- to-face with the new challenges of governance and citizens’ organisations.
The systems approach, behavioural approach, human relations approach, socio-psychological approach have all emphasised the relationship of administration with the environment besides highlighting the interrelationship of employees within the public organisations.
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The role of public administration in the era of globalisation, privatisation and liberalisation also draws the attention on the relationship of the stale, public administration, market and society. The newfound role of public administration in the globalisation context has its genesis in the public choice approach and the New Right philosophy of market supremacy.