Decentralisation delusion

There is no political will to hand over the powers and resources to local govts to respond to peoples needs.

On April 24, 2013, India celebrated the 20th anniversary of the passage of the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments mandating the creation of a third tier of the elected governmentthe panchayati raj institutions (PRIs)in rural areas and municipal councils in urban India. hen passed, these amendments embodied the aspiration of transforming Indias top-down, district magistrate raj babu culture through greater decentralisation. However, 20 years on, there is little argument that this aspiration remains unfulfilled and efforts to decentralise government, despite the constitutional provisions, have been half-hearted at best.