experiment in india · "democratic centralism'' . relationship with administrative...

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THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY January 14, 1961 Democratic Decentralisation Experiment in India S P Aiyar THAT local self-government is a necessary basis for democracy is one of the questionable tenets of political science. There is no causal relationship between the two. Indeed, local self-government far from being democratic could be the very anti- thesis of democracy. The realities of local political life are often a violation of the spirit and ethics of democracy. It is true that where there has been a long tradition of local government, as in England, democracy has flourished, but it is wrong to think that merely by creat- ing local institutions the basis of democracy is laid. As a contempo- rary author has put it. " T h e .search for vigorous democracy, however, is not exhausted by the search for an institution. For although misorga- nisation may stifle democratic vigour. even the best institutions cannot in themselves create i t . " (Arch Dotson in Indian Journal of Public Admi nistration, January-March 1958). Historical Role of Villages A good deal of the enthusiasm for rural administration in India alter Independence has been based on such misconceptions. That India has had a long history of local self- government has been questioned. Frequent foreign invasions have in- terrupted its development. When Ripon sought to revitalise local insti- tutions, the Village Panchayats had practically ceased to exist. During the national struggle for indepen- dence, the village came to be glori- fied, for, all nationalist movements tend to look back and read the past in the light of a glorious sunset. Largely due to the influence of Mahatma Gandhi, the village be- came a symbol of rural aspirations even as he himself became a symbol of rural India. That the village must be the basis of a truly Indian democracy was taken for granted. At the time of framing the Con- stitution the desire to embody in it the ideals of Gandhiji was wide- spread. The Draft Constitution, however, contained no reference to Village Panchayats. This was ex- plained later by Dr B R Ambedkar. Quoting Metcalfe, he showed how our ' villages lived on helplessly thr- ough one foreign invasion alter another. He said : "Knowing this, what pride can one feel in them? That they have survived through vicissitudes may be a fact. But. mere survival has no value. The question, is on what plane have they survived. Surely on a selfish level. I hold that these village republics have been the ruination of India. I am. therefore, surprised that those who condemn provincialism and cornmu- nalism should come forward as champions of the village. What is the village but a stink of localism and a den of ignorance, narrow- mindedness and communalism? I am glad thai the Draft Constitution has discarded the village and adopted the individual as its unit." Dr Ambedkar's views led to much discussion in the Constituent As- sembly and in the press, but his argument was never refuted, Refund all criticism lay the argument thai Mahatma Gandhi regarded the vil- lage as important. The spell of Gandhiji proved more powerful than the views of this 'heretic'. So the Constitution as it finally evolved in- cluded an. Article (40) which direct- ed that "The State shall take steps to organise village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government." Balwantrai Mehta Report The reorganisation of rural admi- nistration is now regarded as an inevitable step towards '"democratic decentralisation.'' The Report of the Balwantrai Mehta Committee which is the basis of rural organisation in some nine States, has endorsed the view that within the district a well- organized democratic structure of administration should be created "in which the Village Panchayats will be organically linked with popular organisations at a higher level." This democratic structure should not be merely a creature of the State Gov- ernment, exercising some powers and discharging functions delegated to it by the latter, but a real effec- tive and self-sufficient entity. The Report recommended the abo- lition of the old district boards and the creation of a three-tiered system with a Panchayat. Samiti at the block level constituted through in- direct elections from the Village Panchayats. exercising all functions relating to development work and vested with the authority of approv- ing the Panchavat budget. Every village in the block is to have its own Panchavat; where appropriate, two or more villages will have one. The Panchayats will also exercise development activities. Some of its functions will be obligatory; others can be added with the consent of the Panchayat Samiti. It will function as the agent of the Samiti in execut- ing schemes of development. Finally, at the district level a Zi da parishad will be constituted, including the presidents of the Panchayat Samitis. M L As and M Ps from the district and district level officers of the medi- cal, public health. agriculture, veterinary, engineering, education, backward classes welfare, public works and other development depart- ments. One of the officers of the Parishad will function as its Secre- tary. The Zila Parishad will have no executive functions. It will seek to coordinate the working of the vari- ous Panchavat Samitis. It will re- place the existing District Planning Committee. "And only the Zila Parishad will, in all matters deal directly with the government of Commissioner or Divisional Officer, where such functionaries exist." Decentralisation in Practice* The suggestions of the Mehta Re- port have received the stamp of public approval throughout the country. Andhra Pradesh was the first to experiment with democratic decentralisation in 20 blocks at the rate of one block in each district, beginning from July 1 1958. At present, more than half of Andhra is covered by the scheme with the establishment of 271 Panchayat Samitis. Uttar Pradesh. Bombay. Kerala and Madras are experiment ing on a smaller scale. The Rajas- that! Panchayat Samitis and Zila' 57

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Page 1: Experiment in India · "democratic centralism'' . Relationship with Administrative Machinery Third, the position of the Collec tor vis-a-vis the Zila Parishad and the Panchayat Samiti

T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y January 14, 1961

Democratic Decentralisation Experiment in India

S P Aiyar

T H A T local self-government is a necessary basis for democracy is

one of the questionable tenets of pol i t ical science. There is no causal relationship between the two. Indeed, local self-government far f r o m being democratic could be the very anti­thesis of democracy. The realities of local pol i t ica l l i fe are often a v io la t ion of the spi r i t and ethics of democracy . It is true that where there has been a long t radi t ion of local government, as in England, democracy has flourished, but it is wrong to th ink that merely by creat­ing local insti tutions the basis of democracy is l a i d . As a contempo­rary author has put it. "The .search for vigorous democracy, however, is not exhausted by the search for an ins t i tu t ion. For although misorga-nisation may stifle democratic vigour . even the best insti tutions cannot in themselves create i t . " ( A r c h Dotson in Indian Journal of Public Admi nistration, January-March 1958) .

Historical Role of Villages

A good deal of the enthusiasm for rura l adminis t ra t ion in India alter Independence has been based on such misconceptions. That Ind ia has had a long history of local self-government has been questioned. Frequent fore ign invasions have in­terrupted its development. When R ipon sought to revitalise local insti­tutions, the Vi l lage Panchayats had pract ical ly ceased to exist. D u r i n g the nat ional struggle for indepen­dence, the vil lage came to be g lor i ­fied, for , all nationalist movements tend to look back and read the past in the l igh t of a glor ious sunset. Largely due to the influence of Mahatma Gandhi , the vi l lage be­came a symbol of r u r a l aspirations even as he himself became a symbol of ru ra l I n d i a . Tha t the vil lage must be the basis of a t r u l y Ind ian democracy was taken for granted.

At the t ime of f r aming the Con­st i tut ion the desire to embody in i t the ideals of Gandh i j i was wide­spread. The Dra f t Consti tution, however, contained no reference to Vil lage Panchayats. This was ex­plained later by Dr B R Ambedkar . Quot ing Metcalfe, he showed how

our ' villages lived on helplessly thr­ough one foreign invasion alter another. He said : " K n o w i n g this, what pride can one feel in them? That they have survived through vicissitudes may be a fact. But. mere survival has no value. The question, is on what plane have they survived. Surely on a selfish level. I ho ld that these village republics have been the ru ina t ion of India . I am. therefore, surprised that those who condemn provincial ism and cornmu-nalism should come forward as champions of the vil lage. What is the vil lage but a stink of localism and a den of ignorance, narrow-mindedness and communalism? I am glad thai the Draft Constitution has discarded the vil lage and adopted the ind iv idua l as its unit."

Dr Ambedkar 's views led to much discussion in the Constituent As­sembly and in the press, but his argument was never refuted, Refund all cr i t ic ism lay the argument thai Mahatma Gandhi regarded the v i l ­lage as impor tant . The spell of Gandhi j i proved more powerful than the views of this 'heretic'. So the Constitution as it finally evolved in­cluded an. Art ic le (40) which direct­ed that "The State shall take steps to organise village panchayats and endow them wi th such powers and authori ty as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government."

Balwantrai Mehta Report

The reorganisation of rural admi­nistration is now regarded as an inevitable step towards '"democratic decentralisation. ' ' The Report of the Balwantra i Mehta Committee which is the basis of ru ra l organisation in some nine States, has endorsed the view that w i t h i n the district a well-organized democratic structure of adminis trat ion should be created " i n which the Vi l lage Panchayats wi l l be organically l inked wi th popular organisations at a higher level." This democratic structure should not be merely a creature of the State Gov­ernment, exercising some powers and discharging functions delegated to it by the latter, but a r e a l effec­tive and self-sufficient enti ty.

The Report recommended the abo­l i t ion of the old district boards and the creation of a three-tiered system wi th a Panchayat. Samiti at the block level constituted through in­direct elections f rom the Vil lage Panchayats. exercising a l l functions relating to development work and vested with the authori ty of approv­ing the Panchavat budget. Every village in the block is to have its own Panchavat; where appropriate, two or more villages w i l l have one. The Panchayats w i l l also exercise development activities. Some of its functions w i l l be ob l iga tory ; others can be added wi th the consent of the Panchayat Samit i . I t w i l l function as the agent of the Samiti in execut­ing schemes of development. F ina l ly , at the district level a Zida parishad wi l l be constituted, inc luding the presidents of the Panchayat Samitis. M L As and M Ps f rom the district and district level officers of the medi­cal, public health. agriculture, veterinary, engineering, education, backward classes welfare, publ ic works and other development depart­ments. One of the officers of the Parishad w i l l function as its Secre­tary. The Zi la Parishad w i l l have no executive functions. It w i l l seek to coord ina te the work ing of the var i ­ous Panchavat Samitis. I t w i l l re­place the existing Dis t r ic t Planning Committee. " A n d only the Zila Parishad w i l l , in a l l matters deal directly wi th the government of Commissioner or Divis ional Officer, where such functionaries exist."

Decentralisation in Practice*

The suggestions of the Mehta Re-port have received the stamp of public approval throughout the country. Andhra Pradesh was the first to experiment w i t h democratic decentralisation in 20 blocks at the rate of one block in each district , beginning f rom July 1 1958. At present, more than half of Andhra is covered by the scheme wi th the establishment of 271 Panchayat Samitis. Uttar Pradesh. Bombay. Kerala and Madras are experiment ing on a smaller scale. The Rajas-that! Panchayat Samitis and Z i l a '

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January 14, 1961 T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y

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Page 3: Experiment in India · "democratic centralism'' . Relationship with Administrative Machinery Third, the position of the Collec tor vis-a-vis the Zila Parishad and the Panchayat Samiti

T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y January 14, 1961

Parishads B i l l , 1959, was introduced in the Vidhan Sabha on May 18. 1959. The scheme was launched on October 2, 1959 wi th much fan-fare which reminded one of the inaugu­rat ion of Communi ty Development scheme on Gandhi Jayanti in 1952. Speakiifg on the occasion the Pr ime Minis te r said "Today you are launching a new programme. I do r o t know how glad Maha tmaj i would have been if he were alive today, as it is a big and historic step for the people of tile State who have decided to shoulder such a big responsibil i ty as of adminis ter ing the works of nat ional development," The Rajasthan experiment is a plunge in the dark . If i t succeeds. there is no doubt that its LuHucncc w i l l spread throughout the country.

Possible Dangers There are. however, certain fea­

tures of the' scheme which make one sceptical of its future. Firs t it is difficult to demarcate the functions of the Panchayat Samit i and of the Vi l lage Panchayat. The demarcation made in the Mehta Report indicates a clear over lapping of functions. For example, the village may supply d r i n k i n g water, so may the Pancha­yat Sami t i , Aga in , the Vi l lage Panchayat is charged wi th the supervision of p r i m a r y schools, ad­minis t ra t ive control of which is

vested in the Panchavat Sami t i . Further, the block is charged wi th the "welfare of backward classes and the vil lage has also to attend to "the welfare of the backward classes," There seems to be an un­conscious assumption that the areas of local government should coincide w i th those of Communi ty Develop­ment. This assumption is question­able and w i l l lead to an even greater confusion in functions. At prescnl there seem to be too many agencies work ing on almost parallel lines in Rajasthan. There are the Com­muni ty Development organisations the mul t ipurpose cooperative societies and the Panchayals, A l l of them have their own py ramida l set-ups. but l i t t le has been done to coor­dinate their activit ies. One of the many problems facing the Rajas than Government is to b r ing about this coord ina t ion .

Second, even if a clear demarca­t ion of powers at this level is possi ble. there is another danger. The close p r o x i m i t y of the Panchayats. Panchayat Samitis and Z i l a Parishads migh t result in the higher bodies

usurping and destroying the ini t ia­tive of the lower bodies. If the same party dominates at the State and distr ict levels, this danger is heightened and democratic decentra­lisation may conic to resemble "democratic centralism' ' .

Relationship with Administrative Machinery

T h i r d , the posi t ion of the Collec­tor vis-a-vis the Z i la Parishad and the Panchayat Samiti is not clear. The Mehta Report suggested that the sMb-divisional officer or revenue divis ional officer should be chairman of the Panchayat Samit i to ensure thai the adminis trat ive machinery of the block is assembled and set in motion by a person wi th adminis­trative experience. In many Slates, therefore, the Collector is the chair­man of tile Zi la Parishad. To place a government officer in such a key position w i l l not make for the free development of democratic institu­tions in the villages In Rajasthan. the Collector is to be an ex-officio member of the Z i la Parishad with-out the right to vote, for it is fell that i f the C o l l e c t o r i s g i v e n the right to vote he max be drawn into the w h i r l p o o l of local polities which w i l l affect his posit ion as the cus­todian of law and order.

The Z i l a Parishad is a poli t ical invention which is astonishing in its conception. The presence of M L As and M Ps on the Parishad w i l l serve no purpose, for if they do not take genuine interest in local affairs, as appears l ike ly , the Zi la Parishad. as a "House of Elders" w i l l serve no Useful purpose. On the oi l ier hand, if they take too much interest in local affairs, they wi l l intensify local poli t ics and therein be a source of great mischief. There is thus the possibility of the Zila Parishad be­coming either superfluous or perni-tions. As a coordinating device, the Zila Parishad is of dubious value. Curicusiv enough, l i t t le i n fo rma t ion is avai lable about its staff or its budget, though its functions would call for considerable staff and money.

Finally, as a result of "decentra­lisation and Community Develop-ment a new army of officials wi l l enter our rural areas. As a com­mentator has said. "The convergence on the rura l areas of an army of small officials gramsevaks. exten­sion workers. teachers, cooperative and social education organisers.

and many others. wou ld be an inevitable complement of implement ing the scheme. The possibility of the minia ture , but indispensable-a rmy of small bureaucrats at the public health and sanitation workers Samit i and village levels creating situations in the villages in which the people might feel administrative-lv suffocated, is not altogether non­existent. Vi l lage democracy can flounder as easily on the rocks of bureaucratic penetration of village life as on the absence of an ade­quate reserve of local voluntary effort and talent to canalise the peo­p les energies and enthusiasm into f ru i t fu l channels." Observer in The Times of India. October 31. 1 9 5 9 .

Misconceived scheme

The whole scheme of democratic decentralisation is misconceived and based on the assumption that since the denial of responsibility makes men irresponsible, the best way to make them responsible is to saddle them wi th responsibi l i ty. with add­ed responsibilities, it is argued, men might make mistakes but in the long run they w i l l learn to govern them* -elves. Rut the history of urban government dur ing the past half-a-century does not support this. When we now recall what Dr B R Ambed-kar said in the Constituent Assemb ly more than a decade ago. the relevance of his warning becomes obvious. fac t ional ism and casteism are important factors in rural l ife. The Prime Minis ter honself struck a note of warning while inaugurat­ing the Rajasthan experiment. He pointed out that s imply because many of those who were present had been elected to Panchavat Samitis and Zila Parishads. it did not mean that they had all become wise and powerful . " Y o u must beware of polities and groupisin creeping in . be warned. The working of vil lage Panehavats in Rajasthan and else­where is far f rom encouraging. Klectioiis as they are held in many villages are a travesty of democracy.-The Balwantra i Mehta Report also mention- the feuds and quarrels that darken the rura l l i fe . Panchayals often consist only of the wealthy and the inl luenf ia l . The scheme of democratic decentralisation thus opens up the village to more "poli­ties'. The int rus ion of parties into rura l government may do more harm than good to democracy.

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January 14, 1961 T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y

It may be t rue that the State is h igh ly central ised today hut decen­t ra l isat ion does not. therefore, Be­come a v i r tue. Decentral isation is tmtdated in an age dominated by science and technology. A century ago Edwin Chadwick realised this when he sa id : " T h e devi l himself. Sir , fe l l because he opposed cen­tral isat ion." ' In countr ies l ike Great B r i ta in there has been, in fact a na r row ing down of t rad i t iona l local autonomy. This has not however, rendered them any less democrat ic. Our ma jor prob lem today is to pro­vide the vi l lages wi th the essentials of l i fe . To f r i t te r away our l imi t ­ed resources in setting up and admin is ter ing rura l organisations of dubious value cannot therefore be permi t ted . The t ime factor is also impor tan t . In a century which has witnessed the dramat ic t ransforma­tion of Russia w i th in for ty years and in which China threatens to industr ia l ise itself in ha l f that t ime, it is naive to be complacent in the belief that the people wi l l learn to govern themselves ' in the long run" by a process of t r ia l and er ror . "In the long run many things can happen !

Notes :

See (a) Gerorges langrod lord Government and Democracy public spring 1953.

(b) Leo Mmoulin : Local self - Govern-ment as a Basis for Democrary

a further comment public Admi-mistration, Winter. 1954.

also refer keith panter Bricks rejoin-der to this point of view in public administrution. winter 1953 & 1951

2 See for instance, Morris Edward Opler Factors of tradition and channe in a Local Election in Rural India," in Park and Tinker's Leader-ship and Political Institutions in India

Kothari Sugars & Chemicals Ltd

THE subscr ipt ion list of k o t h a r i Sugars & Chemicals L im i ted

was closed on December 22. The shares, it is learnt. were oversubs­cr ibed nearly twice and the app l i -cations received exceeded Rs 70 lakhs The al lotment is expected to be made by the middle of this month.

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