DECENTRALIZING RURAL GOVERNANCE AND DEVELOPMENT: Perspectives, Ideas and Experiences

Decentralization for local governance and development is not only an institutional arrangement to be viewed simply from the perspective of public administration or to be confined exclusively to the domain of policy makers. It is something more; it is an ideology and a way of formulating and implementing policy decisions in public spheres and as such includes a variety of perspectives and aspects. Thus decentralizing rural governance and development is viewed in this volume not simply in terms of constitutionalizing and revamping the local level arrangements but in premises of diverse ideas and experiments originating in the society. The present volume is an attempt in this direction putting together the contributions of experts, academics and development professionals engaged in this field. The common thread uniting the papers in this publication highlights the thesis that the amendments, backed by interplay of diverse socio-political forces, have made the changes in the ‘oceanic circle’ of Indian society that is capable of ushering in a great beginning in the politics of inclusion. Indeed a process of churning has begun in the democratic power structure of the country to provide a legitimate share for the millions, which has been observed by the contributors in this volume with an outlook of social scientists more concerned with society and its transformation.

Contents
1 Decentralization and Local Governance / Mohit Bhattacharya
2 Gandhian Approach to Development and Decentralization / Anil Kumar Jana
3 Tagore’s Views on Decentralized Development / Kumkum Chattopadhyay
4 Decentralizing for Development / Asok Kumar Mukhopadhyay
5 Local Governance in Indian Federal System / Prabhat Kumar Datta
6 Participatory Democracy and Panchayats in India / Budh Bahadur Lama
7 Role of Panchayati Raj Institutions in Rural Development / Apurba Kumar Mukhopadhyay
8 Capacity Building of Panchayati Raj Institutions / Debnarayan Modak
9 People’s Participation in Development through the PRIs / Soma Ghosh
10 The Panchayati Raj and the Bureaucracy / Alok Kumar Mukhopadhyay
11 Institutionalizing Decentralized Planning in India / Buddhadeb Ghosh
12 Whither Partyless and/or Non-Party Panchayats / Sakti Pada Pal
13 West Bengal Panchayat Elections 2013 / Chanchal Chakrabarti
14 Ethnopolitics and Self-governance in Darjeeling Hills / Tapan Kumar Das
15 Identity, Autonomy and Development through Decentralization / Jhumpa Mukherjee
16 Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and Decentralized Development / Dibyendu Sarkar
17 Delivering Guaranteed Employment: Experience of Half a Decade of Decentralized Development / Utpal Chakraborty