The 73rd Constitutional Amendment is a milestone in the modern history of India and it has taken democracy to the grassroots. It aims to transform the characteristics of our democracy from representative to representative and participatory democracy. Before going into the details of the process of decentralization of powers in the states over a period, it is necessary to explain the basic framework of decentrali­zation of powers.To operationalise the basic framework – both letter and spirit – the state governments have to take an array of steps that are fundamental and basic for the establishment of a local governance system.By keeping the above framework, in the last twenty years how decentral­ization took place in south Indian states – Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala has been evaluated in this volume. The four chapters have been written by G. Palanithurai, M. Gobinath Reddy, M. Sivanna and Jos Chathukulam. Along with the above state-specific chapters, there are a few chapters covering Panchayat finance in South Indian States and democratiza­tion in this volume written by B. DevendraBabu and G. Palanithurai, respec­tively. S. N. Sangita has written a chapter on Political regime, Decentralized Governance and social security in south Indian states. It is also included in this volume. Further the chapter written by V. N. Alok on “Devolution of Powers to Local Bodies” has been incorporated in the present work. Finally yet another paper on “Decentralization of Powers: Acceleration and Deceleration” by G. Palanithurai for a different journal has also been included. Thus totally nine papers have been accommodate

Over the past three decades, decentralization has been seen as the means for allowing local governments to become more accountable, and for encouraging the deepening of democracy and the building of village communities. By drawing on original village-level case studies of six villages in three different Indian states, this book presents a systematic analysis of the impact of decentralization on the delivery of social services at the local level within India. Supplementing national and state-level data and analyzing the different historical legacies in each state, the book argues that decentralization is not simply a function of the structure of the decentralization program or of the relationship between higher-tiered and local government. Rather, the possibility of decentralization affecting social outcomes depends on several interacting factors, including the distribution of power among local elites, the dynamics of political competition, and the level of civil society mobilization. By examining constitutionally-mandated political decentralization across India, this book identifies the circumstances under which local government structures can lead to improved social services and societal wellbeing, as well as presenting a substantial contribution to studies on South Asian Politics and Local Government.

Why Democracy Deepens explains how socio-economic changes in India are shaping its politics to promote grassroots democracy.

This book examines the impact that decentralisation reforms, initiated in the early 1990s, have had on small towns in India. It specifically focuses on small towns in Uttar Pradesh, one of the most densely populated and poorest states in India. Although considered home to one of the oldest urban civilisations, India remains one of the least urbanised regions in the world. At the same time, the country has many million-strong metropolises that are among the world’s largest megacities, as well as a multitude of small and medium-sized towns and cities. This paradoxical urbanisation, against a backdrop of reforms, has interested the scientific community to gain a more nuanced understanding of the changes and challenges involved. This book analyses an urban environment often overlooked by researchers and public authorities, namely, that of small towns. These towns are of vital importance as this is where the bulk of future urban development will take place. However, decades after implementation of the reforms, the majority of reviews and assessments have focused on large cities and so the impacts of the reform on small towns are still poorly understood. This book includes extensive primary data about political, technical and financial municipal issues in small towns of northern India and, is therefore, of interest to students, researchers and planners working on urban and regional studies in the global South.

"This book describes the transition in Indian healthcare system since independence and contributes to the ongoing debate within development and institutional economics on the approaches towards reform in the public health system. The institutional reform perspective focuses on examining the effective utilisation of allotted resources and improvements in delivery through decentralisation in governance by ensuring higher participation of elected governments and local communities in politics, policymaking and delivery of health services. It discusses the economic (resource) reforms to explain the relevance and expansion of state interventionism along with its influence on the health sector, accountability and allocative efficiency. The author also explores the connections between neoliberal thought and privatisation in health sector, and examines the greater role of insurance-based financing and their implications for health service access and delivery. The book offers ways to address long-standing systemic and structural problems that confront the Indian healthcare system. Based on large-scale surveys and diverse empirical data on the Indian economy, this book will be of great interest to researchers, students and teachers of health economics, governance and institutional economics, political economy, sociology, public policy, regional studies and development studies. This will be useful to policymakers, health economists, social scientists, public health experts and professionals, and government and nongovernment institutions"--

This handbook examines 25 years of decentralised governance and development in India. It provides a historical overview of developments since the introduction of decentralisation reforms (73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Acts) and critically assesses the measures initiated to strengthen decentralised institutions and deepen grassroots democracy. It also discusses the status of service delivery and identifies the issues and challenges involved in achieving development at the local level. The volume studies themes such as the devolution of powers in India, administrative and fiscal decentralisation, decentralised planning, Panchayats in scheduled areas, the sociological aspects of decentralisation, caste, gender and local democracy, capacity building, ICT for local governance, urban local governance, workfare and decentralisation, and decentralised natural resource management. It also looks at Panchayati Raj institutions from a Gandhian perspective. The first of its kind, this handbook will be an essential read for scholars and researchers of decentralisation and development, development studies, fiscal decentralisation, political studies, political sociology, Indian politics, Indian government, public policy and governance, political economy, South Asian studies, and South Asian politics.