This volume focuses on sucessful cases of innovative change in public service delivery and offers comment on initatives to continue change and further develop best practice.

Why are inter-state differences in human development in India so high? What explains regional patterns where overall the southern region has some of the best human development outcomes in the country while the states in the northern ‘heartland’ have the worst? In addressing these important questions, this volume provides a detailed analysis of health outcomes in India, especially its effects on women. It offers insights into how multiple factors affecting human development, in particular health, play out differently in various socio-cultural and economic contexts. This book will interest scholars and researchers of sociology, development studies, gender studies, economics, public policy as well as general readers.

Examines the United Progressive Alliance-led government's (2004-14) agenda for the religious minorities in India.

Deepak Gupta did his BA from Allahabad, MA from St Stephen’s college and MPhil in International relations from JNU. From the IAS batch of 1974, he has spent many years in the field in the erstwhile state of Bihar, including two districts (Saharsa 1979–80; Rohtas 1986–88) as Collector. He served in many departments in state and center and was also posted in India Trade Centre, Brussels and spent a year as WHO Advisor on TB in Delhi. He retired in 2011 as Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. After retirement he consulted with the World Bank and UNIDO and writes on issues of energy and sustainable development. He was Chairman of UPSC from November 2014 to September 2016. His published works include Documentation of Participatory Irrigation Management, Covering a Billion with DOTS, Achieving Universal Energy Access in India: Challenges and Way Forward, and Caught by the Police.

With increasing population and expanding demand for urban infrastructure services, the capacities of local governments in many developing countries are overburdened. Adequate infrastructure is not only necessary for increasing productivity but also improving the quality of living. Given the primacy of public service delivery for cities to become engines of growth, this book answers two critical questions: Does low spending explain the state of poor public service delivery? How can urban local bodies have access to greater resources so as to enable them to improve public service delivery? Using case studies of four citie—Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Jaipur, and Bangalore—the book examines urban services such as water supply, sewerage, sanitation, solid waste management, municipal roads, and street lighting. It compares the state of these services with international norms and suggests new ways in which they can be financed and improved. More specifically, the book examines the role of land as a revenue-generating source in India's cities.

Despite Asia’s rapid growth, vast sections of its population still live in poverty and suffer hunger and other forms of deprivation. Merely relying on Asia’s growth will not help the deprived see a better future in their lifetimes. Ways must be found to make growth more inclusive combined with proactive public action to bring substantial improvements in the lives of Asia’s deprived people. This book is written by a set of experts who have been working long on reducing various aspects of human deprivations in Asia. It begins with a discussion of the massive dimensions of deprivations that continue to exist in Asia. Although many countries have adopted inclusive growth strategies to enable the benefits of growth to reach the poor, much more needs to be done to make growth processes more broad based and beneficial to all. The book points to essential action needed to bring this about. The book also emphasizes the crucial role of determined, target driven public action if Asia’s deprived populations are to see substantial improvement in their lives. Practical measures to tackle problems of hunger, unemployment, gender discrimination, ill health, lack of quality basic education, inadequate access to clean water and basic sanitation are each discussed. The problems of the urban poor and migrants who continue to flock to Asia’s cities are also highlighted. The book also emphasizes the need for an appropriate environment for public action to succeed including strong participatory institutions, effective governance, social protection and regional cooperation.

E-Government in Asia offers a thorough examination of e-governance in Asia, including the uses of the Internet to mediate interactions between Asian governments and their citizens. The book examines how the Internet is reshaping these interactions in the region and summarizes the nature of e-government, the growth of the Internet in Asia, issues of the digital divide, and how the Internet is affecting the ways in which public services are provided, how Asians acquire information, and other issues. Offers essential reading for many social science courses on Asia, including geography, political science, public administration, as well as courses on the social impacts of technology, notably the Internet Examines issues of e-governance, which loom large in significant Asian economies, including China Examines how e-governance in Asia is shaped by regional geographies Explores how the Internet is affecting the ways in which public services are provided and how Asians acquire information