THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY
January 14, 1961
Democratic
T H A T 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 f r o m being
democratic could be the very anti-
thesis of democracy. The realities
of local political life are often a
v i o l a t i o n 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 t h i n k that merely by creat-
i n g local institutions the basis of
democracy is l a i d . 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 . " ( A r c h Dotson
in Indian Journal of Public Admi
nistration, January-March 1 9 5 8 ) .
Historical Role of Villages
A good deal of the enthusiasm for
r u r a l administration in I n d i a alter
Independence has been based on
such misconceptions. That I n d i a has
had a long history of local self-
government has been questioned.
Frequent foreign invasions have in-
terrupted its development. When
R i p o n sought to revitalise local insti-
tutions, the V i l l a g e Panchayats had
practically ceased to exist. D u r i n g
the national struggle for indepen-
dence, the village came to be g l o r i -
fied, for, all nationalist movements
tend to look back and read the past
in the l i g h t of a glorious sunset.
Largely due to the influence of
Mahatma Gandhi, the village be-
came a symbol of r u r a l aspirations
even as he himself became a symbol
of r u r a l I n d i a . T h a t the village
must be the basis of a t r u l y I n d i a n
democracy was taken for granted.
At the time of f r a m i n g the Con-
stitution the desire to embody in it
the ideals of G a n d h i j i was wide-
spread. The Draft Constitution,
however, contained no reference to
Village Panchayats. T h i s was ex-
plained later by Dr B R A m b e d k a r .
Q u o t i n g Metcalfe, he showed how
Decentralisation
Experiment in India
S P Aiyar
our ' villages lived on helplessly thr-
ough 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 h o l d
that these village republics have
been the r u i n a t i o n of India. I am.
therefore, surprised that those who
condemn provincialism and cornmu-
nalism should come f o r w a r d 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 i n d i v i d u a l 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
G a n d h i j i proved more powerful than
the views of this 'heretic'. So the
Constitution as it finally evolved in-
cluded an. Article (40) w h i c h direct-
ed that " T h e State shall take steps
to organise village panchayats and
endow them w i t h 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
B a l w a n t r a i Mehta Committee which
is the basis of r u r a 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
administration should be created " i n
which the Village Panchayats will
be organically l i n k e d w i t h 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 r e a l effec-
tive and self-sufficient entity.
57
The Report recommended the abo-
l i t i o n of the old district boards and
the creation of a three-tiered system
w i t h a Panchayat. Samiti at the
block level constituted through in-
direct elections f r o m the Village
Panchayats. exercising a l l 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 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 o b l i g a t o r y ; others
can be added w i t h the consent of the
Panchayat Samiti. It w i l l function
as the agent of the Samiti in execut-
ing schemes of development. F i n a l l y ,
at the district level a Zida parishad
w i l l be constituted, including the
presidents of the Panchayat Samitis.
M L As and M Ps f r o m the district
and district level officers of the medi-
cal, public health. agriculture,
veterinary, engineering, education,
backward classes welfare, p u b l i c
works and other development depart-
ments. One of the officers of the
Parishad w i l l function as its Secre-
tary. The Z i l a Parishad w i l l have
no executive functions. It w i l l seek to
c o o r d i n a t e the w o r k i n g of the vari-
ous Panchavat Samitis. It w i l l re-
place the existing District Planning
Committee. " A n d only the Zila
Parishad w i l l , in a l l matters deal
directly w i t h the government of
Commissioner or D i v i s i o n a l 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. A n d h r a 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 r o m July 1 1958. At
present, more than half of Andhra
is covered by the scheme w i t h 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 '
 THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY
January 14, 1961

58
 THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY
Parishads B i l l , 1959, was introduced
in the V i d h a n Sabha on M a y 18.
1959. The scheme was launched on
October 2, 1959 w i t h much fan-fare
w h i c h reminded one of the inaugu-
ration o f C o m m u n i t y Development
scheme on Gandhi Jayanti in 1952.
Speakiifg on the occasion the P r i m e
M i n i s t e r said "Today you are
launching a new p r o g r a m m e . I do
r o t know how glad M a h a t m a j 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
responsibility as of administering
the works of national development,"
The Rajasthan experiment is a
plunge in the d a r k . If it 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 w h i c h make one
sceptical of its future. First it is
difficult to demarcate the functions
of the Panchayat S a m i t i and of the
V i l l a g e Panchayat. The demarcation
made in the Mehta Report indicates
a clear o v e r l a p p i n g of functions.
For example, the village may supply
d r i n k i n g water, so may the Pancha-
yat Samiti, A g a i n , the Village
Panchayat is charged w i t h the
supervision of p r i m a r y schools, ad-
ministrative control of which is
vested in the Panchavat Samiti.
Further, the block is charged w i t h
the "welfare of backward classes
and the village has also to attend
to "the welfare of the backward
classes," There seems to be an un-
conscious assumption that the areas
of local government should coincide
w i t h those of C o m m u n i t y Develop-
ment. This assumption is question-
able and w i l l lead to an even greater
confusion in functions. At prescnl
there seem to be too many agencies
w o r k i n g on almost parallel lines
in Rajasthan. There are the Com-
m u n i t y Development organisations the
m u l t i p u r p o s e cooperative societies
and the Panchayals, A l l of them
have their own p y r a m i d a l set-ups.
but little has been done to coor-
dinate their activities. One of the
many problems facing the Rajas
than Government is to b r i n g about
this c o o r d i n a t i o n .
Second, even if a clear demarca-
tion 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
m i g h t result in the higher bodies
u s u r p i n g and destroying the initia-
tive of the lower bodies. If the
same party dominates at the State
and district levels, this danger is
heightened and democratic decentra-
lisation may conic to resemble
"democratic centralism'' .
Relationship with Administrative
Machinery
T h i r d , the position of the Collec-
tor vis-a-vis the Z i l a Parishad and
the Panchayat Samiti is not clear.
The Mehta Report suggested that
the sMb-divisional officer or revenue
divisional officer should be chairman
of the Panchayat Samiti to ensure
thai the administrative machinery of
the block is assembled and set in
motion by a person w i t h adminis-
trative experience. In many Slates,
therefore, the Collector is the chair-
man of tile Z i l a Parishad. To place
a government officer in such a key
position w i l l not make for the free
development of democratic institu-
tions in the villages In Rajasthan.
the Collector is to be an ex-officio
member of the Z i l a Parishad with-
out the right to vote, for it is fell
that if the Collector is g i v e n the
right to vote he max be d r a w n into
the w h i r l p o o l of local polities which
w i l l affect his position as the cus-
todian of law and order.
The Z i l a Parishad is a political
invention w h i c h 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 likely, the Zila Parishad.
as a "House of Elders" will serve
no Useful purpose. On the oilier
hand, if they take too much interest
in local affairs, they w i l l intensify
local politics and therein be a source
of great mischief. There is thus the
possibility of the Zila Parishad be-
coming either superfluous or perni-
tions. As a coordinating device, the
Zila Parishad is of dubious value.
Curicusiv enough, little i n f o r m a t i o n
is available about its staff or its
budget, though its functions would
call for considerable staff and money.
Finally, as a result of "decentra-
lisation and Community Develop-
ment a new army of officials w i l l
enter our rural areas. As a com-
mentator has said. "The convergence
on the rural areas of an army of
small officials gramsevaks. exten-
sion workers. teachers, cooperative
and social education organisers.
59
January 14, 1961
and many others. w o u l d be an
inevitable complement of implement
ing the scheme. The possibility of
the miniature, but indispensable-
a r m y of small bureaucrats at the
public health and sanitation workers
Samiti and village levels creating
situations in the villages in which
the people might feel administrative-
lv suffocated, is not altogether non-
existent. Village democracy can
flounder as easily on the rocks of
bureaucratic penetration of village
life as on the absence of an ade-
quate reserve of local voluntary
effort and talent to canalise the peo-
p l e s energies and enthusiasm into
fruitful channels." Observer in
The Times of India. October 31.
1959.
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 w i t h responsibility. with add-
ed 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 d u r i n g 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. f a c t i o n a l i s m and casteism
are important factors in rural life.
The Prime Minister honself struck
a note of warning while inaugurat-
ing the Rajasthan experiment. He
pointed out that simply 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 i n .
be warned. The working of village
Panehavats in Rajasthan and else-
where is far f r o m encouraging.
Klectioiis as they are held in many
villages are a travesty of democracy.-
The B a l w a n t r a i Mehta Report also
mention- the feuds and quarrels that
darken the r u r a l life. Panchayals
often consist only of the wealthy
and the inlluenfial. The scheme of
democratic decentralisation thus
opens up the village to more "poli-
ties'. The intrusion of parties into
r u r a l government may do more
h a r m than good to democracy.
J a n u a r y 14, 1 9 6 1 THE ECONOMIC WEEKLY

It may be true that the State is

h i g h l y centralised today h u t decen-
t r a l i s a t i o n does not. therefore, Be-
come a v i r t u e . Decentralisation is
tmtdated in an age d o m i n a t e d by
science and technology. A century
ago E d w i n Chadwick realised this
when he s a i d : " T h e devil himself.
Sir, f e l l because he opposed cen-
tralisation."' In countries like Great
B r i t a i n there has been, in fact a
n a r r o w i n g d o w n o f t r a d i t i o n a l local
autonomy. T h i s has not however,
rendered them any less democratic.
O u r m a j o r p r o b l e m today is to pro-
vide the villages w i t h the essentials
of l i f e . To f r i t t e r away our l i m i t -
ed resources in setting up and
a d m i n i s t e r i n g r u r a l organisations o f
dubious value cannot therefore be
permitted. The time factor is also
important. In a century w h i c h has
witnessed the d r a m a t i c t r a n s f o r m a -
tion of Russia w i t h i n f o r t y years
and in w h i c h China threatens to
industrialise itself in h a l f that time,
it is naive to be complacent in the
belief that the people w i l l learn to
govern themselves ' i n the long run"
by a process of t r i a l and error.
"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 s u b s c r i p t i o n list of kothari
Sugars & Chemicals Limited
was closed on December 22. The
shares, it is learnt. were oversubs-
cribed nearly twice and the a p p l i -
cations received exceeded Rs 70
lakhs The allotment is expected
to be made by the m i d d l e of this
month.

60