Decentralization and development: the effects of the devolution of power on education in India

This article examines some factors that may determine the different outcomes of decentralization and, in particular, factors that are important when reforms manage to improve democratic and governance performance in spite of a hostile or harsh institutional environment. The specific case studied is how the panchayat reforms have affected one of the biggest problems of public schools in India - personnel absenteeism, often caused by the fact that publicly employed personnel are neglecting their duties to work for private institutions. This played a crucial role in making education and health services more effective following the giving of more power to local democratic governing bodies in the decentralization schemes, and the first findings from a pilot study carried out in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh in 2002 is presented.