Inclusion and local elected governments : the Panchayat Raj system in India
Disa Sjoblom | Ruth J. Alsop | Anirudh Krishna
The purpose of this study was to assess the degree and nature of exclusion and inclusion within panchayat raj organizations in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. This was examined using a database assembled for a group from six districts-three in each state. The districts in Rajasthan were Ajmer, Bhilwara and Dungarpur, and Neemuch, Mandsaur and Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh. The villages selected for study included some that sit astride major roads and others that are located some distance away and are relatively hard to access. Villages both large and small, as well as single-caste-dominant and mixed-caste villages are represented in the study. Also represented in the study are villages where the post of sarpanch is open to all, and others where the sarpanch is female, or from a scheduled caste (SC) or scheduled tribe (ST). The central question addressed was whether a person's social and economic attributes determined their participation in gram panchayat activities. Our original hypothesis, which was based on documentation and rural experience, suggests that those who are present and heard during panchayat meetings tend to be the better educated males and those who are wealthier, more articulate and of higher caste than the general population. Our analysis indicates that certain groups-mainly women and tribal people-have very limited participation, but that assumptions relating to caste and wealth as determinants of exclusion do not hold true.
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