From Decentralisation of Planning to People's Planning: Experiences of the Indian States of West Bengal and Kerala

From Decentralisation of Planning to Peoples Planning - Experiences of the Indian States of Kerala and West Bengal by Charvak, 2000: The Discussion Paper attempts a comparison of the process of decentralisation of planning in the two States that have made significant progress in this area. The study shows that social mobilisation, process of democratisation, mass conscientisation, demand from below, and collective action have been responsible for their success. It also makes a critical review of the evolution of local bodies in these States followed by an analysis of the process, and the new innovative experiments of decentralisation. A detailed account of the Kalliasseri experiment (from Resource Mapping to Peoples Plan Campaign) as well as the KSSP experiment (from Science Popularisation to Local Level Planning) is also given. The study concludes with the observation that instrumentalities such as the total literacy campaign, peoples mobilisation, popular science movements, and mass conscientisation are the necessary conditions for replicating of the Kerala and the West Bengal experience in other States. (http://www.krpcds.org/fellowsh.htm)(http://www.krpcds.org/charvak.pdf. Other related works of Charvak: Background Paper to UNDP, India, 1998, Country Strategy Paper for IDF-1998 and to the UN award winning HDR-2004 of West Bengal).