Decentralizing Rural Governance and Development: Perspectives, Ideas and Experiences

Book Details

• Author: Anil Kumar Jana

• Binding: Hardcover

• Publisher: Rawat Publications

• ISBN: 9788131606810

• Language: English

• Release Date: 2015

• Pages: 340

• Package Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches

About the Book

Decentralization for Local Governance and Development explores decentralization as more than just an institutional arrangement. The book argues that it is a fundamental ideology and a critical process of implementing policies for social transformation. The contributors, including experts, academics, and development professionals, explore decentralizing rural governance and development not merely as a constitutional or administrative issue but as a broader social and ideological experiment. The volume highlights how decentralization in India, influenced by a range of socio-political forces, has contributed to a more inclusive political system capable of incorporating previously marginalized sections of society.

The book examines decentralization in India in light of changes that have begun in the democratic power structure of the country, offering insights into the politics of inclusion. The process of change and churning within the Indian society is documented, pointing to the potential for decentralized governance to empower local communities and give them a legitimate share in political and economic decisions.

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

About the Author / Editor

Anil Kumar Jana is a senior professor and former head of the Department of Political Science with Rural Administration at Vidyasagar University, West Bengal. He has extensive teaching experience spanning four decades and has published a number of articles and papers. His major works include Quit India Movement in Bengal, Indian Politics at the Crossroads (ed.), and Administering District Plans in India. Professor Jana has significant experience in the functioning of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and has contributed extensively to planning and management in educational institutions. He is also the founder-secretary and director of the Vidyasagar Centre for Social Sciences, Midnapore, and edits Samaj Jijnasa, a social science journal in Bengali.