Empowerment is both a means to an end and an end in itself (Beteile, 999, p. 590). The term empowerment can be considered fluid, allowing itself to be used in different situations. Its meaning is usually based on the context and not with a theory. Where one might have said in the past that women, Adivasis, or even agricultural labourers were disadvantaged, one is more likely to say today that they are unempowered (Beteile, 999, p. 590). Citizen empowerment or people empowerment is generally concerned with the citizens, social transformation, and power. Empowerment, as viewed by the intelligentsia, has been a way of addressing problems like inequality and oppression. Through empowering the people, they are given the courage, ability, as well as power that can alter the perspective of the public on them. Empowering the citizens is essential for the government in order to create a bond that can help increase their service efficiency. Patel (20, p. 405) emph
asized that the citizens and the government should work together to achieve their goals. However, it can also be viewed that citizen empowerment does not necessarily equate with equality. Power has the tendency to be distributed in an unequal manner. Power that is equally distributed is rare, limited, and often unstable (Beteile, 999, p. 592). When one is empowering the people, it is not simply rearranging the power, it is also a matter of trust and confidence in what they can do. Menike (993) elaborated that in empowering the poor, they should believe in what they are capable of and respect their conditions. She pointed out that the government, as well as NGOs, should be able to give solutions that would really empower the people by consulting them in the planning, designing, and implementing of their projects. They need to be absorbed in their situation instead of simply instilling new practices that would only cause harm and confusion to the community.