Empowering the ‘socially excluded’ in rural local governments: An exploratory study from a State...

EMPOWERING THE ‘SOCIALLYEXCLUDED’ IN RURAL LOCAL

GOVERNMENTS: AN EXPLORATORYSTUDY FROM A STATE IN INDIA

SEKHAR BONU1*,y, MANJU RANI2z, DAVID H. PETERS3x and TIMOTHY D. BAKER3�

1Asian Development Bank, Manila, Philippines2World Health Organization, WPRO, Manila, Philippines

3Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, USA

Abstract: The study investigates the effects of mandatory political representation of women

and non-forward castes in India (73rd Constitutional Amendment) on development prefer-

ences and social equity. We used systematic content analysis of proceedings from meetings of

155 rural village assemblies. The study revealed overemphasis on physical infrastructure,

relative neglect of health and education, influence of state government directives and

marginalisation of gender issues. However, there was higher likelihood of articulation of

non forward caste-related issues by non-forward caste chairpersons. A paradigm shift in the

development perspective of local governments, stressing investments in leadership develop-

ment is needed. Copyright # 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Keywords: Asia; India; empowerment; decentralization; social change; rural development

1 INTRODUCTION

Decentralisation is often suggested as a potential strategy to enhance equity, efficiency and

local responsiveness of development administration (World Bank, 2000). Past experiences

with decentralisation efforts worldwide, however, have been mixed (Rondinelli et al.,

1983). The focus of this paper is on skewed development preferences and dominance by

Journal of International Development

J. Int. Dev. 23, 42–62 (2011)

Published online 1 July 2009 in Wiley Online Library

(wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/jid.1566

*Correspondence to: Sekhar Bonu, Development Bank, ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City, Manila, Philippines.E-mail: [email protected] Urban Development Specialist.zScientist.xAssociate Professor.�Professor.

Copyright # 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

local elite—the two major concerns that have emerged from past decentralization

experiences across a number of countries.

Skewed development preferences of the decentralised institutions may result in less than

optimal allocative efficiencies. For example, development professionals have expressed

concern that brick-and-mortar investments (which result in creation of tangible assets) may

take preference over human development issues such as education or health, for which

explicit demand may be low. The second concern involves inequities in political

representation from different social groups that may lead to weakening of equity and

accountability in the decentralised institutions. In societies where social inequities are

widespread, the decentralised institutions might reflect similar inequities in political

representation and in the development agenda that dominant groups advocate.

Evidence from some countries indicates that decentralised institutions may become

tools of local elite who may in turn usurp the development agenda to their advantage

(Narayan and Petesch, 2002). In India, ‘social exclusion’1 is widespread for women

(Miller, 1989; Murthi et al., 1995; Jeffrey and Basu, 1996; Visaria, 1996; Agarwal, 1997)

and members of non-forward castes2 (Beteille, 1969; Ghurye, 1969; Furer-Haimendorf,

1982; Galanter, 1984; Chaubisa, 1988; Omvedt, 1993). Exclusion has been documented in

almost all walks of social life, as well as in the rural local governments, called the

Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in India. Before 1993, women constituted less than 1

percent of all the representatives in the PRI, and non-forward castes rarely commanded

enough representation to influence policies and programs in the PRIs (Sirsikar, 1970; Narain

et al., 1976; Chaubisa, 1988; Shiviah and Srivastava, 1990; Webster, 1992; Jeffery, 2000).

When decentralised institutions dominated by local elite have proclivity for skewed

development preferences, development failures are striking. For example, in some

communities, the majority of girls or non-forward caste children may not be attending

schools and the non-forward caste clients may not be utilising health services for the fear of

mistreatment by the health providers. Yet, the problems do not become serious issues for

the local political organisations (Dreze and Sen, 1995).

Some developing countries have adopted mandatory representation for the ‘socially

excluded’ groups—especially for women3—to protect interests of the socially excluded in

decentralised institutions (World Bank, 2001). The Parliament of India passed the 73rd

Constitutional Amendment in 1992 to provide mandatory representation for women and

non-forward castes in the PRIs. One-third of all the positions in the PRIs were reserved for

women, and positions proportional to the population of the non-forward castes were

reserved for the non-forward castes (Mukherjee, 1993; Ramachandran, 1993; Meenakshi

Sundaram, 1997).

1‘Social exclusion’ denotes a phenomenon of marginalisation experienced by individuals or sections of society. Itmay be due to the failure of institutions in the society that destroy social cohesion or due to fragmentation of socialrelations (Cartaya et al., 1997).2Hindu religion is hierarchically organised along innumerable castes and sub-castes that vary by region. However,there are four main castes: Brahman (priest), Kshatriya (warrior), Vaishya (merchant) and Shudra (worker). TheBrahmans and Kshatriyas are the high-status castes while the Shudras are historically considered the lowest caste.Caste is divided into four main groups by the Indian government: scheduled tribes (comprising the tribalpopulations, primarily in north-east and central parts of the country), scheduled castes (Shudras), other backwardcastes (other occupational castes) and general castes (Brahaman, Kshatriya and Vaishayas). The first three groupsare special population groups that the Indian Government identifies as socially and economically backward and inneed of special protection from social injustice and exploitation.3The International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) at Cairo in September 1994 highlightedthat though progress is being made, women continue to be grossly underrepresented in the political process andadvocated that barriers to their participation in political process must be removed (UNFPA, 1995).

Copyright # 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. J. Int. Dev. 23, 42–62 (2011)

DOI: 10.1002/jid

Exploratory Study From a State in India 43

It was argued that the women and non-forward caste representatives in the PRIs would

articulate a development agenda that addresses gender- and caste-based inequities in

development, respectively (Mukherjee, 1993; Jain, 1994; Jain, 1996). Besides leading to

better articulation of interests of women and non forward castes, mandatory reservations

for women and non-forward castes were also expected to highlight concerns for

development in health and education, since women and non-forward caste social groups

have historically experienced the worst health and educational outcomes. However, little is

known about the development agenda championed by PRIs, in general, or more specifically

by the representatives of the ‘socially excluded’ members in the decentralised institutions.

Few studies have systematically examined the development issues supported by the

PRIs, or the impact of mandatory reservations for the socially excluded groups on the

decision-making process of the PRIs. Using data collected from the local citizens, Alsop

et al. (2000) investigated the impact of reservations in the PRIs on the participation of

socially excluded groups in the activities of local governments. Chattopadhyay and Duflo

(2001) examined the impact of reservations on decision-making process of rural local

governments by interviewing elected representatives of the local governments and

villagers about changes in the type and quality of village infrastructure.

This study uses a new source of data—the official proceeding of meetings of village

assemblies— to gain insights into the decision-making process of the local governments.

By carefully scrutinising the proceedings of the meetings organised at the lowest level of

PRIs, the study investigates how representation by female or non-forward caste

chairpersons influences the development agenda. The hypotheses we tested are whether

(a) the gender or caste of the chairperson influences the balance between discussion of

infrastructure and human development issues in the PRIs; (b) representation of women and

non-forward castes in the PRIs affects the inclusion of health and education issues in the

discussions of PRI meetings; and (c) representation of women and non-forward castes in

the PRIs leads to greater likelihood of decisions that would bridge gender- and caste-based

development gaps.

The findings are relevant not only for India, but also for countries that have embarked on

decentralisation for making the development process more equitable, inclusive, and

sustainable. The study will also provide evidence on the utility of mandatory political

representation as a strategy to increase the participation of socially excluded groups in the

social development process.

2 STUDY SETTING AND DATA

The study was conducted in the northwestern Indian state of Rajasthan—geographically

the second largest state in India, having a population of 56 million (5 percent of India’s total

population). The PRIs in Rajasthan, like other states in India, are organized along a three-

tier system—at the level of district, development block and a group of villages as shown in

Figure 1. The composition of the Panchayati Raj representatives in Rajasthan is shown in

Table 1. Our study examines the policy decision-making process and development agenda

only of the lowest level PRIs, the Gram Panchayat (GP). Each GP’s jurisdiction

encompasses 3–10 villages and has a population of about 10 000 people. The executive

body of the GP is headed by a directly elected chairperson called the sarpanch and is

composed of 6–10 ward members directly elected from the constituencies under the

jurisdiction of GP.


DOI: 10.1002/jid

44 B. Sekhar et al.

The law requires GPs to conduct regular meetings of the village-wide assemblies (called

gram sabhas in Hindi) four times a year to take stock of administrative and development

matters and to finalise development plans (Government of Rajasthan, 1994). All adults—

18 years or older—residing in the jurisdiction of the GP are members of the village-wide

Figure 1. Structure of PRIs in Rajasthan state

Table 1. Percentage distribution by gender and caste of elected representatives in rural localgovernments in Rajasthan state, India

Designation Caste Gender Total(number)

Forwardcaste

Otherbackwardclasses

Scheduledcastes

Scheduledtribes

Male Female

Village

GP chairperson 54 12 18 16 67 33 9185

Ward members 55 13 17 15 68 32 103 712

Block

Block chairperson 53 15 17 15 66 34 237

Block members 55 12 18 15 67 33 5257

District

District chairperson 50 16 19 16 69 31 32

District members 55 12 18 15 67 33 997

Total 54 13 17 16 68 32 119 420


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assembly and are eligible to participate in the quarterly meetings. At least 10 percent of the

total members of the village assembly should be present to constitute a quorum for the

village assembly. The proceedings of the meeting of village assembly are recorded by

secretary (gram sevak) of the GP in Hindi (the official language of Rajasthan) and are

considered as official documents.

The empirical findings presented in the study are based on data derived from the official

proceedings (minutes) of the meetings of village assemblies. The sampling framework for

the study was purposive and relied on the willingness of the GPs from four blocks in Jaipur

and three blocks in Ajmer districts to participate in the study. The proceedings of village

assemblies were obtained with the help of the Director of Panchayti Raj, who oversees the

local governments. The Director of Panchayati Raj requested all the GPs from selected

blocks in Ajmer and Jaipur districts to provide a copy of proceedings of the most recent

meeting of village assembly. 155 GPs from seven development blocks4 provided the

photocopies of the proceedings of meetings of village assemblies organised between

January and May 2001, all of which were included in the study. Of the approximately 250

GPs from seven development blocks, 155 GPs participated in the study giving a response

rate of 60 percent. To control for seasonal variations in the administration’s focus (during

monsoon, the focus is more on flood relief; and during summer, the focus is more on

drinking water), the study was limited to one meeting held within the first quarter of the

year.

Systematic ‘content analysis5’ was the main qualitative research technique used to

analyse the text data in the proceedings. The coding instrument was constructed in

accordance with the hypotheses of the study to capture as much data as possible. The

instrument was organised into 11 sections focusing on different administrative and

development themes. The copy of data coding instruments is given at Appendix A.

Each document of the village assembly proceedings typically comprised 10–15 pages.

Since first two authors are fluent in Hindi, the documents were not translated into English,

but were directly coded from the original documents using the coding instrument. Both the

authors coded all the proceedings separately and independently. The inter-coder reliability

between the two coders was found to be very high (90 percent). In cases where there were

differences in coding, both the coders discussed the differences and then recoded the data to

reconcile the differences.

Since the main interest of the study is to examine how the local governments handled the

public health, education, gender, and caste-related issues, detailed coding of different

issues was done for these topics. For public health issues, data were classified according to

10 essential functions of public health (Institute of Medicine, 1998) along with other public

health functions deemed important in the rural Indian settings.

Data were also coded to identify any issues that showed the sensitivity of local

governments toward gender- or caste-based inequities in development. This included

discussion and identification of beneficiaries under special schemes meant for non-forward

caste or women and undertaking special measures to mitigate disadvantages faced by these

groups.

4These include Amer, Chaksu, Phagi and Sanganer development blocks in the Jaipur district, and Bhinai, Pisanganand Srinagar development blocks in Ajmer district.5Content analysis is an unobtrusive research technique that requires construction of a coding scheme to quantifythe symbolic forms, coding of the content, and finally, analysing and interpreting the data (see Weber, 1990 formore details).


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46 B. Sekhar et al.

The data entry was done in Microsoft Access and analysed using STATA statistical

software. Data are mainly reported as frequency counts and frequency comparisons.

Pearson x2 tests are conducted to test the significance of differences across different

categories in the cross-tabulations. As of the simple regression analysis was significant,

multivariate analysis was not conducted.

3 FINDINGS

Of the 155 GPs in the study, 99 (64 percent) were headed by a male chairperson, 56 (36

percent) by a female chairperson. The caste composition of the GPs was as follows: 66 (43

percent) of the chairpersons were from forward caste groups, and the remaining were from

the non forward castes. Among the non forward castes, 36 each were from other backward

castes (OBCs) and scheduled castes (SCs), and 17 belonged to scheduled tribes (STs).

Broadly, the topics discussed in the gram sabhas were coded into eight areas: (a) public

health, (b) school education, (c) building community assets, (d) individual beneficiary

schemes, (e) other development schemes, (f) relief works, (g) vigilance and (h) general

aspects of proceedings. Within each of these subject areas, various sub-areas were

identified (details given in Table 2 for general aspects, Table 3 for public health and Table 4

for school education).

The general aspects of proceedings (57 percent) and demands for community assets

(55 percent) dominated the gram sabhas proceedings (Table 2). Development schemes

(40 percent), individual beneficiary schemes (32 percent), relief works (29 percent) and

vigilance (21 percent) were moderately discussed (Table 2). Surprisingly, both school

education (11 percent) and public health (3 percent) were discussed infrequently during the

gram sabhas. The gram sabha proceedings generally followed the conventions well

(Table 2). Previous proceedings were read and approved in 74 percent of the cases.

Likewise, previous year’s expenditures were discussed 76 percent of the time.

The state government issues broad guidelines to the rural local governments on regular

basis on how to conduct meetings of the village assemblies. The examination of the

proceedings of the meetings reveals that most of the GPs have a tendency to follow the state

government guidelines. Proceedings of most of the village assemblies (92 percent) have

recorded reading out the minutes of previous village assembly meetings and obtaining

approval of proceeding as required in the guidelines. Similarly, most of the proceedings

(90 percent) recorded an agenda item on discussion and approval of previous year’s

expenditures. Rest of the findings are presented under three broad headings: infrastructure

development, health and education and gender and caste.

3.1 Infrastructure Development

Proposals for creation of different physical assets dominated the development agenda of

almost all the village assemblies. Proposals were recorded on the installation of hand

pumps (100 percent), construction of new roads or improvement of an existing road

(98 percent), construction of additional rooms in school buildings (98 percent),

construction of open drainage channels (82 percent) and construction of small irrigation

works such as tanks and small dams (80 percent). The proposals were recorded not by the


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Table 2. General aspects of gram sabha proceedings

Subject Subject raised (%)

General aspects of proceedings

Previous proceedings read 74

Previous year’s expenditures discussed 76

Current budget discussed 64

Development programs discussed 50

Abadi land issues discussed 48

Community land issues discussed 54

Efforts to raise local revenues made 30

Vigilance

Vigilance committee constituted 24

Vouchers of development works shown and verified 0

Muster rolls of development works shown 4

General local governance issues discussed 52

Accounts related issues discussed 10

Fair price ration shop discussed 36

Relief works

Discussed relief works 58

Suggested new works for relief 30

Examined old relief works 12

Suggested maintenance works for relief 10

Reviewed ongoing relief works 26

Discussed about drinking water problem 30

Discussed about fodder for animals 36

Individual beneficiaries

Housing 80

Widow pension 54

Handicapped pension 50

Old-age pension 34

Loans 18

Individual assets 16

Ration cards 26

Gender 6

Caste 4

Assets

Roads 98

Irrigation 94

Soil conservation 50

Community hall 82

Sanitation 76

School 80

Health 28

Animal husbandry 18

Drinking water: pipe line 34

Drinking water: hand pump 60

Drinking water: well 54

Electricity: new 10

Electricity: extension 30

Development schemes

Balika Samriddhi Yojana 58

Jawahar Rojgar Yojana/Employment Assurance Scheme 56

Integrated Rural Development Program 18

Jawahar Gram Samriddhi Yojana 82

(Continues)


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48 B. Sekhar et al.

type of asset needed but by the different development schemes (such as Jawahar Rojgar

Yojna6, drought relief works, etc.) run and managed by the state or central government7.

Varying number of beneficiaries under different individual beneficiaries schemes (such

as Indira Awas Yojna8, old age/disability pension schemes) were also listed in all the

Table 2. (Continued)

Subject Subject raised (%)

Training of rural youth for self-employment 2

Indira Awas Yojana 82

Member of Parliament scheme 10

Member of Legislative Assembly scheme 82

Watershed development 0

Social welfare 0

Anganwadi scheme 52

Para-teachers 0

Women’s collectives 82

Table 3. Percent of GPs recording proposals on different health issues in the village assembly bythe gender and caste of the chairperson

Gender�� Caste��

Aspects of healthissues discussed

Total,N¼ 155

Male,N¼ 99

Female,N¼ 56

Forwardcaste,N¼ 66

Otherbackwardclasses,N¼ 36

Scheduledcastes,N¼ 36

Scheduledtribes,N¼ 17

Creation of new health

infrastructure/repair of

existing facility

45 48 39 41 47 56 31

Review of health staff

attendance

57 60 52 55 56 56 61

Discussion of public

health problems

5 5 5 9 3 3 0

Provision of information

about different health issues

30 30 29 30 25 42 19

Different health schemes

promoted by state/central

government

45 40 52 44 44 47 44

Demand for additional

health staff

10 9 13 12 8 6 11

Construction of public toilet 17 14 22 19 15 15 17

Note: Monitoring health status, diagnosis and investigation of health problems, develop plans and policies, enforcelaws and regulations, linking people with needed personal health services, evaluation of effectiveness/accessibility/quality of personal and population-based health services, conduct research, immunisation, curativecare, women’s health issues, child health issues, non-forward caste-related health issues, old age health issues, anduser fees were coded, but were not discussed at all, and hence were excluded from above table.��None of the differences were significant at p< 0.10 (x2 test).

6English translation being ‘Jawahar Employment Scheme’—a rural employment scheme sponsored by centralgovernment to create assets while generating employment for the poor in rural areas.7It is mandatory for district authorities to obtain proposals approved by GPs for most of the development schemesof the state and central government.8The English translation is ‘Indira Housing Scheme’—a rural housing subsidy scheme sponsored by the centralgovernment for households below the poverty line.


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proceedings. However, it was not possible to judge or comment on the fairness of the

beneficiary selection procedure from the data. In addition, the relative importance given to

different individual beneficiary schemes varied between different GPs. While individual

housing scheme, old age and widow pension schemes appeared in almost all the

proceedings, maternity benefit scheme, medical relief card scheme and Balika Samriddhi

Yojna9 appeared less often.

Almost all the GPs (90 percent) recorded a proposal on review of ‘below poverty list

(BPL)’ to identify any ineligible individual beneficiaries as required under the state

government guidelines. An agenda item was also recorded in almost all the GPs on public

audit of development projects undertaken in the past. Only four GPs recorded inclusion of

wrong beneficiaries in the BPL, and no GP recorded any complaint of corruption in the

construction works undertaken in the past. This is in sharp contrast to the frequent

complaints of ineligible persons obtaining benefits under schemes for people below

poverty line and complaints of rampant corruption in the construction of different physical

assets (Alsop et al., 2000; Chattopadhyay and Duflo, 2001). No statistically significant

differences (x2 test) were found in the type of assets proposed by the gender or caste of the

chairperson.

Table 4. Percent of GP recording proposals on different aspects of school education in the villageassemblies by the gender and caste of the chairperson

Gender Caste

Aspect of schooleducation discussed

Total,N¼ 155

Male,N¼ 99

Female,N¼ 56

Forwardcaste,N¼ 66

Otherbackwardclasses,N¼ 36

Scheduledcaste,N¼ 36

Scheduledtribe,N¼ 17

Creation of new room in

school/repair of existing

rooms

98 99 96 97 100 100 94

Upgradation of school

level

18 18 16 14 19 25 13

Universalisation of

elementary education

51 51 50 59 47 50 25�

Demand for additional

teachers/school

25 29 16 26 28 19 25

Toilet facility in the school 27 28 25 24 29 28 38

Teacher’s attendance 62 65 57 58 61 61 81

Student’s attendance 8 6 13 11 8 6 6

Enrolment of girls 5 7 2 5 14 0 0

Appointment of a

para-teacher

60 56 68 59 56 67 63

Note: Non-forward caste issues, user fees, and other local resources of funding for education were not discussed atall and hence were excluded from above table.�Differences are significant at p< 0.10 (x2 test).

9The English translation is ‘Girls Enrichment Scheme’—a scheme sponsored by state government to enhance thesocial status of girls.


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50 B. Sekhar et al.

3.2 Health and Education

3.2.1 Health

Health department officials were present in 54 percent of the village assemblies. Only half

of the village assemblies had one or more public health issues on their agenda. Many

aspects considered as essential elements of public health (monitoring of health status,

investigation of health problems, enforcement of health laws and regulations, etc.) were not

discussed by any of the GPs. Table 3 presents the frequency of discussion of health issues in

the GPs.

Almost 4 in 10 GPs recorded a proposal related to physical infrastructure for health

facilities, which included proposals for construction of a boundary wall, repair of the

building, construction of a hand pump, construction of a toilet in the building, construction

of a new building, etc. Though GPs headed by male chairpersons and SC chairpersons were

more likely to record a proposal on health infrastructure, differences were not statistically

significant (x2 test). No proposals were recorded for the maintenance of existing health

infrastructure by any of the village assemblies.

The routine tone of the language used to record some of the health related proposals was

in compliance with the state guidelines, but did not display any genuine concern for the

issue. For example, the standard language used to record the proposal on ‘information on

women and child health issues’ mentioned in 30 percent of GPs was ‘the auxiliary nurse

midwife (ANM) informed the villagers about women and child health issues’, with little

variation from one GP to another. Though the GPs headed by forward caste chairpersons

were more likely to record discussion on any health problem, the differences were not

statistically significant (x2 test).10

Interestingly, compared with other individual beneficiaries schemes, proposals on health

schemes (maternity benefit scheme and medical relief card scheme) were recorded in only

15 percent of the GPs. While no difference was seen by the caste of the chairperson, GPs

headed by women chairperson were more likely to record discussion on health schemes

(52 percent versus 40 percent, though x2 text not statistically significant).

Proposals on sanitation came up in a substantial proportion of GPs. The majority of the

proposals were for construction or repair of open drainage channels under several

government-sponsored schemes. Seventeen percent of the village assemblies recorded

proposals for construction of public toilets and urinals. While female chairman-headed

GPs were more likely to record proposals for the construction of public toilets as presented

in Table 2, differences were not statistically significant. None of the village assemblies

deliberated upon maintenance of existing open drainage channels or public toilets/urinals.

A substantial number of GPs (21 percent) recorded irregular attendance of health

workers and longstanding vacancies of posting of health staff. Three of the GPs recorded

proposals for posting of a female doctor, another three GPs recorded complaints about lack

of drugs and charging of arbitrary fees by the doctors in the health facilities. In all cases,

10Only 5 percent GPs specifically mentioned that ANMs discussed family planning issues or specific healthproblems in the GP. In two GPs, a mention was made about the childhood immunisation.With the exception of fewGPs, no further details were provided on discussions about child and women health. One GP recorded a problemwith pollution due to a nearby factory, and another recorded a problem with high fluoride in the drinking water.Four GPs discussed low contraceptive use in the area, and one of the GP recorded the names of patients sufferingfrom tuberculosis. Whatever information was given by the ANM, local initiative was lacking in recording thehealth-related proposals.


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GPs resorted to petitioning higher authorities for transfer of erring employees and did not

deliberate on other ways to resolve the situation.

Except for two village assemblies that recorded resolutions to clean their villages with

the help of community, there was no mention about community mobilisation for public

health in the remaining GPs.

3.2.2 School education

More village assemblies recorded proposals on school education than for health. However,

the proposals were confined to few issues. Table 4 presents the type of proposals recorded

on education. Independent of the caste or gender of the chairperson, almost all the village

assemblies recorded proposals for creation of physical assets. The proposals for funding

under different development schemes of the state or central government included

construction of extra classrooms (90 percent), construction of a boundary wall around the

school building (50 percent), construction of toilets in the school (27 percent), installation

of a hand pump (20 percent) and the repair of existing classrooms (10 percent) (Table 5).

With the exception of two village assemblies, no GP recorded proposals for improving

the teaching materials. Though the schools had been transferred to the local governments

by executive order of the state government, no proposals were recorded in any of the village

assemblies for the regular maintenance of their schools.

Surprisingly, proposals on universalisation of elementary education (UEE) were

recorded in substantial number of village assemblies (51 percent). With few exceptions, the

proposals were recorded in a very rhetorical and ritualistic manner. The strikingly similar

language used for recording the UEE proposal across different village assemblies was

‘villagers were informed about the need for universalisation of the primary education,

regular attendance, joyful learning and all the villagers were encouraged to send their

children to the schools’ with little variation across GPs. This type of statement put the

assemblies in compliance with the guidelines issued by the state government but did not

seem to reflect any genuine concern for the issue.

There were also some specific efforts. In three GPs, the names of all the out-of-school

children and children attending school irregularly were listed and read to the village

assemblies. A detailed plan to bring these children to the school with specific

responsibilities to each government employee and the elected representatives was laid

Table 5. Percent of GPs recording discussions relating to gender and caste by the gender and castebackground of the sarpanch

Item Discussion ongender-related issues (%)

Discussion oncaste-related issues (%)

Overall (N¼ 155) 16 28

Gender of the sarpanch

Male (N¼ 99) 18 24

Female (N¼ 56) 12 30

Caste of the sarpanch �

Forward (N¼ 66) 16 12

OBCs (N¼ 36) 15 31

SC/ST (N¼ 53) 17 58

OBC, other backward classes; SC, scheduled caste; ST, scheduled tribes.�Differences are significant at p< 0.05 (x2 test).


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52 B. Sekhar et al.

down. FewGPs specifically recorded concern over low female or low caste child enrolment

in the schools.

GPs headed by ST chairpersons were significantly less likely to record proposals on

universalisation of education (P< 0.09), though no differences was seen between male and

female chairpersons.

Though some village assemblies recorded the constitution of an ‘education committee’

(also suggested in the state guidelines), no mention was made about the functions and

responsibilities of these committees.

Almost one in four GPs recorded a proposal for posting additional teachers or for

additional schools. Proposal to upgrade schools from a primary to a middle school or from

middle to secondary school (18 percent of the village assemblies) was frequently

discussed. However, no statistically significant (x2 test) differences were seen by the

gender of the chairperson, though ST chairpersons (13 percent) and forward caste

chairpersons (14 percent) were less likely to raise the proposals for upgradation of the

schools (difference not statistically significant).

Almost 62 percent of the GPs recorded a proposal concerning the review of teacher’s

attendance, mostly as a part of an agenda item to review the attendance of all the

government employees (state government issued guideline to review attendance of all

government servants in the GP’s jurisdiction). Contrary to growing evidence of high rates

of public servant absenteeism, 70 percent of the GPs recorded that ‘all the government

employees are regular and working satisfactorily’. Only 10 percent of the GPs recorded

specific comments on teacher’s attendance, mostly complaining about the irregular

attendance. Only eight percent of the GPs discussed about regular attendance of students in

the schools with female and forward caste chairpersons more likely to record this proposal.

Another interesting finding is that 15 percent of the GPs recorded discussion on school

results, mostly expressing dissatisfaction over poor results and demanding transfer of the

under-performing teachers. Again, female and forward caste chairpersons were more likely

to record proposals on school results, though the differences were not statistically

significant using x2 test.

3.3 Gender and Caste

3.3.1 Gender

Overall, 18 percent of the GPs recorded proposals specifically addressing gender issues.

Contrary to the expectations, 21 percent of GPs chaired by a male chairperson compared to

11 percent of GPs headed by a female chairperson recorded proposals reflecting explicit

gender concerns. No substantial difference was observed by the caste of the chairperson.

The nature of the proposals on gender issues varied widely across different GPs. In a GP

headed by female chairperson, the village assembly was held separately for women to

discuss women’s rights. One GP headed by a female chairperson proposed constitution of a

women’s advisory committee to improve the lot of women in the villages. A GP headed by

male chairperson recorded a proposal for construction of an enclosure to ensure privacy for

women who bath near the tank. In contrast, one GP headed by a male forward caste

chairperson proposed a resolution against inheritance of agricultural land to girls.

Other GPs raised issues about construction of rest rooms in the school especially for the

girls, girl child enrolment, appointment of a lady doctor, opening of schools for girls and

upgradation of girls’ schools to improve their chances of higher education. 37 percent of


DOI: 10.1002/jid


the GPs recorded proposals to constitute self-help groups for women (an item included in

the guidelines issued by the state government). GPs headed by male chairperson recorded

proposals on constitution of women self-help groups (39 percent) at a higher frequency

than GPs chaired by women (30 percent). While only 25 percent of the GPs headed by a ST

chairperson discussed constitution of self-help groups for women, 44 percent of the GPs

headed by a SC/OBC chairperson and 32 percent of the GPs headed by forward caste

chairperson did.

3.3.2 Caste

The non forward caste-related issues were recorded in 28 percent of the proceedings.

Caste-related issues were discussed in 24 percent of the village assemblies by a male

chairperson and 30 percent in the village assemblies headed by female chairperson. The

non forward caste-related issues were discussed in village assemblies headed 12 percent by

forward caste, 31 percent by OBCs and 58 percent by SCs and STs, the differences being

statistically significant (p< 0.05 using x2 test).

In two of the GPs headed by a forward caste chairperson, administrative measures that

can be deemed as anti-non-forward castes were taken. One of the GP recorded that a forward

caste applicant should replace the existing SC anganwadi11 worker. Another GP recom-

mended that a fair price shop allotted to a SC person be transferred to a forward caste person.

Proposals reflecting concern for non-forward caste populations were mostly limited to

discussion on government development schemes that target the non forward castes. These

included construction of physical assets such as roads, hand pumps, and community halls

in the non-forward caste neighbourhoods. In only one GP headed by an OBC chairperson, a

proposal was recorded expressing concern over low school enrolment of children from

backward castes.

4 DISCUSSION

Few limitations in the study methodology are as follows. The sample is purposive in nature,

so only the GPs who willingly provided the proceedings were included in the study. The

GPs included in the study came from two most literate districts in the state of Rajasthan.

The findings of the study are also based on what is recorded in the proceedings, and not

what is actually happening in the field. Some researchers have reported modification of the

proceeding by the chairperson and the secretary and falsification of the attendance of the

villagers (Alsop et al., 2000). However, the direction of bias in the results is expected to

be in the positive direction. Given the nature of limitations, it is reasonable to expect that

the proceedings reflect the thinking of some of the better functioning GPs, and it is highly

unlikely that the situation in the field is better than what is arrived through the study.

The cross-sectional nature of our study does not allow us to assess the change in

development agenda before and after the implementation of mandatory representation.

However, we were able to compare differences at one point in time. Comparison with pre-

73rd Constitutional Amendments, that is situation prior to 1992 could be helpful, but will

not be a serious limitation of the study as the comparison between different groups in the

post-1993 situation with male forwards caste as the control group can provide valid

insights. Another major limitation in testing the hypotheses on the impact of mandatory

11Anganwadi worker is the field-level functionary of Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS).


DOI: 10.1002/jid

54 B. Sekhar et al.

representation of women and non-forward castes on gender- or caste-based social

inequities is the lack of data on the distribution of the proposed infrastructure. We tried to

code data for the distribution of physical assets wherever possible, but it was not always

possible to assess the caste of the population served from the name of the neighbourhood. It

was also not possible to verify the eligibility of beneficiaries proposed under various

individual beneficiary schemes. So, our study tests the impact of reservation on gender/

caste equity only as far as direct reference is made in the proceedings to the issues of

concern to women or non forward castes. The effect of mandatory representation may also

be seen in the form of a better quality of infrastructure or better-targeted transfers of

benefits to the excluded groups, which we are unable to assess in this study.

In addition, the timing or season of the year when the village assembly is held may affect

the development agenda of the meeting. This may lead to difficulties in comparing

proceedings between different GPs. However, we overcome the seasonality bias by using

proceeding of the village assemblies held in a particular season (January–May 2001).

Five major findings emerge from study: GPs focus on an input-based approach to

development rather than an outcome-based one; the development agenda is skewed toward

the creation of new physical assets and shaped by the state government-sponsored schemes

rather than by the local needs or initiatives; little effort is made by the leadership of PRIs to

engage villagers on important human development issues such as health and education

regardless of the caste and gender of the chairperson; there is little articulation of issues

regarding gender equity independent of gender of the chairperson and there is a

significantly higher likelihood of inclusion of proposals that address the concerns of non-

forward castes in GPs headed by a non-forward caste chairperson. The policy and program

implications of the findings are discussed under two headings followed by conclusion.

4.1 Skewed Development Agenda With Neglect of Human Development Issues

Irrespective of the gender and caste of the chairperson, few GPs discussed proposals in

terms of their impact on development outcomes. While all GPs recorded proposals to

monitor the budget, few recorded any agenda item to monitor important development

outputs or outcomes such as primary school enrolment rate or number of infant or maternal

deaths. For example, all GPs recorded proposals on the construction of additional school

rooms, but no GP related this to an improvement in enrolment or to the learning outcomes

of children. The lack of the focus on outcomes had its fallouts. It led to a corresponding

lack of prioritisation among different development needs. The input-based approach can be

attributed partly to the way GPs receive funding—tied to specific schemes—from the state

government and partly to their lack of orientation towards outcomes.

Another telling finding that emerges from the study is general lack of interest of PRIs,

irrespective of the gender and caste of the chairperson, in the key human development

issues such as public health and school education. Proposals for creation of physical

infrastructure ranging from roads to school buildings dominated most of the agenda in

almost all the GPs.

Creation of physical infrastructure is an important determinant of development, but

without sufficient emphasis on human development, the development returns of the

physical infrastructure may be limited. Empty school buildings, absentee teachers, under-

utilised health centres, unrelenting school dropouts and avoidable child mortality are much

too common to ignore.


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Why have PRIs overly stressed physical assets development? There could be two main

reasons. The first one is institutional, and the second one is contextual. Historically, the

PRIs have been reduced to the status of ‘implementing agencies’ for various state and

central government schemes. This institutional dependence has seriously undermined the

local initiative. The contextual reason is derived more from the environment in which PRIs

operate—they have a largely illiterate electorate to whom it may be much easier to

communicate ‘physical’ development than ‘human capacity’ development.

Political leadership is supposed to be vanguard of change. Then, why is the leadership in

PRIs less inclined towards critical human development issues? While class, caste and other

differences in the villages of India are major hurdles in building partnerships for human

capacity development, the 73rd Constitutional Amendments, by providing an institutional

framework for better political equity, is an important step in the right direction.

This study, however, reveals that creation of institutional frameworks alone is not

sufficient. There is need to change the institutional culture of dependence in the PRIs to

fully take advantage of the potential of decentralisation for better development outcomes.

There is also a need for a paradigm shift in the ‘development perspective’ of the PRI

leadership. PRIs have to appreciate the central role played by human development in the

overall development and the innate potential of the communities in achieving the human

development objectives. As a first step, the state and central governments have to promote

PRI’s role in human development in rural India. Rajasthan has made a right move by

including issues such as ‘universalisation of primary education’ and ‘information on

women and child health’ in the guidelines issued to the local governments. However, the

state government has to invest a lot in the training and reorientation of the PRI leaders

before these issues are internalised by the local leadership.

4.2 Gender and Non-forward Caste Issues

The findings of the study provide no evidence to support the hypothesis that rural local

governments headed by women chairpersons are more likely to raise the gender issues.

Only 16 percent of the GPs recorded proposals with explicit gender focus, with no

significant differences by the gender of the chairperson. Previous studies have indicated

that increasing women’s involvement in GPs has made a difference in undertaking

programs of interest to women (Datta, 1998; Chattopadhyay and Duflo, 2001). However,

Alsop et al. (2000) did not find any significant differences in the participation of women or

non-forward castes in the activities of local bodies by gender or caste of the chairperson.

Why has mandatory representation of women in PRIs failed to sensitise development

agenda towards reducing gender inequities? Gender relations within households in north

Indian societies are social and cultural constructs that have evolved over generations,

incorporating gender inequities into the cultural milieu and day-to-day social practices.

These gender inequities are perceived as a norm rather than as an undesirable practice

worth erasing. However, it was expected that the elected women would be empowered

enough to correct existing gender inequities. However, the crucial element that was

missing in the change brought about by the 73rd Constitutional Amendment was the

‘agency’ aspect that fundamentally visualizes woman as an ‘agent’ of change (Sen, 1999).

Critical to the transformation of a woman from being a passive recipient of ‘welfare’

benefits to a ‘change agent’ is the consciousness of ‘gender injustice’ and awareness of

resultant gender inequities. To be effective agents, women need to not only appreciate the


DOI: 10.1002/jid

56 B. Sekhar et al.

sources and practices that lead to gender injustice, but also need leadership, organisational,

advocacy and management skills to effectively use newly gained positional power to bring

about gender equity.

For a woman who has been catapulted without adequate preparation into PRI leadership

because of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment, the transition into being a change agent

would entail different challenges. The principal challenge will be the development of

consciousness of pervasive gender injustice, internalizing this awareness, and relating it to

one’s own life situations and to the others in the community. This, however, is less likely to

happen spontaneously. In fact, it may need an external catalyst to evoke this consciousness.

From a public policy and program perspective, the sound way to achieve this transition of

woman into an agent would be through well-designed training programs, group formation

and creation of platforms for group support.

Another possible reason for the lack of articulation of gender issues by the women

chairperson may be the lack of exercise of effective power by them. Gangrade (1997) found

in Rohtak district of Haryana that less than 30 percent of the women representatives

attended the panchayat meetings and in other cases represented by their male members.

Mathew (1999) found that the reservations for women were not viewed positively by their

male colleagues. However, in our study, it was not possible to verify these concerns, since

all the proceedings were signed by the chairperson herself, irrespective of whether she

presided over the meeting or not.

The findings of the study provide some evidence that village assemblies headed by non-

forward castes and STs are more likely to record issues of concern to non forward castes,

which is consistent with the previous studies. Pande (2000) suggested that mandated

political reservations in the state legislature for non-forward castes have increased targeted

transfers that benefit the non forward castes. A long history of mobilisation of the non-

forward castes on caste issues has led to better caste consciousness among the non forward

castes. Similar movements for gender equity are far less frequent and may explain the

better awareness of caste-based deprivation compared to gender-based deprivations.

Better articulation of non-forward caste issues by village assemblies having a non-

forward caste chairperson and the lack of adequate articulation of women’s issues even in

the village assemblies headed by women chairpersons highlight the limitations of

institutional interventions for better social equity. Both social as well as political

mobilization may be required for building momentum for social equity. Institutional

interventions such as 73rd Constitutional Amendment can produce better results in

contexts where there are prior social or political movements for gender and caste equity.

These social and political movements prepare and organize the disadvantaged, who can

take advantage of decentralised institutions when opportunities come by. This may explain

why non-forward castes seem to be taking the advantage of 73rd Constitutional

Amendment, while women are less successful.

5 CONCLUSION

The 73rd Constitutional Amendment of India has been hailed as a watershed in social

legislation, attempting to correct age-old social inequities in rural India. It ushered in a new

hope for rural development by restoring faith in the PRIs. However, evidence from studies

since the implementation of 73rd Constitutional Amendment has not shown large changes

in social equity related to mandatory representation for women and non-forward castes


DOI: 10.1002/jid


(Gowda et al., 1996; Rajasekharan, 1996; Gangrade, 1997; Panda, 1997, 1998; Mathew,

1999).

We argue that Panchyati Raj institutional traditions and overall societal values are some

of the major impediments to the success of 73rd constitutional amendment. Institutional

memory and cultural contexts are difficult to change without concerted effort. Programs

with systematic and detailed guidelines, though important, hindered local initiative of the

PRIs. The culture of dependence for both financial as well as intellectual lead among PRIs

needs to be reversed.

The development agenda of PRIs is one of preoccupation with construction of physical

assets, with an obvious disconnect between inputs, outputs and outcomes. The PRI

leadership should realise inner strengths of the communities for achieving public good.

Community participation and mobilisation should be central to PRI initiatives.

The culture of gender inequities, nurtured through centuries of practices that touch every

walk of life, is also equally resistant to change. Expecting the 73rd Constitutional

Amendment to erase centuries-old gender injustice quickly is asking for too much. It was

also asking for too much to expect women without much political and administrative

background or exposure to address issues of gender inequities effectively within short time.

The question everyone should be asking is ‘have we done enough to ensure the success of

path-breaking social legislation (the 73rd Amendment)?’ Changing the ‘development

perspective’ of PRI leadership is challenging but possible. Training programs to highlight

the centrality of ‘human development’ in the overall development framework need to be

highlighted. Administrative, programmatic and policy changes need to be made to make

PRIs responsible for development outcomes. State and central government grants need to

be devolved in a way that respects local diversity, wisdom and needs, and also in a way that

re-establishes the balance of human development and infrastructure needs. However, this

entails setting adequate processes to ensure funds are used for purposes they are meant for

in a transparent and effective manner.

The lack of political as well as management exposure among new women leaders needs

to be understood and addressed in part through training programs. Gender sensitization

needs to be a core element of training program for PRIs, for men as well as women. Support

systems and interventions to enhance solidarity among large number of women PRI

members can assist in consciousness building, and creating critical momentum for bringing

gender equity in development efforts.

The study has revealed some nascent signs of success of the mandatory representation of

women and non-forward castes in working for better social equity. Much more can be

achieved through concerted policy and program interventions. For other countries that have

plans to emulate India’s mandatory representation for the ‘socially excluded’ in rural

governments, the take-home message is that the standalone legislative measure may have

limited success. Simultaneously, the institutional, social and human capacity contexts also

need to be strategically addressed.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors wish to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their contribution to improving

the article. The opinions expressed in the article are solely those of the authors and do not

represent the views of the organisations for which the authors work.


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58 B. Sekhar et al.

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APPENDIX A: INSTRUMENT USED FOR CODING THE

GRAM PANCHAYAT PROCEEDINGS

(Continues)


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Appendix A (Continued)


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62 B. Sekhar et al.

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