Panchayat Raj and Rural Development : Experiences and Perspective

Contents: Preface. Foreword. 1. In search of Authorioty who Understands more than Dotted lines-Women Empowerment and Panchayati Raj/akhilesh Chandra Pandey and Vineeta Negi. 2. Women and Democratic Decentralization in India/Chhaya Kunwar. 3. Women Empowerment and Panchayats/Ruchi Kukreti. 4. Women and Governance: A Case Study of Women Pradhan/Puran Bartwal. 5. Role of Education in empowering Hill Women in Panchayati Raj Institutions/Rama Maikhuri. 6. Commnity Based Initiatives: The Key to Sustainable Development in Mountains, the Doodhatoli Experiment in Garhwal Himalays/S.K. Bandooni, K.K. Sharma and V.S. Negi. 7. Involvememnt of Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs) in Planning and Implementation of Eco-technologies for Integrated Rural Development in Central Himalayan Region (Uttarakhand)/R.K. Maikhuri, V.S. Negi, L.S. Rawat, P.C. Phondani, Abhay Bahuguna, Deepak Dhyani, C.S. Negi, K.P. Chamoli, and S. Tarafdar. 8. Natural Resource Management through Decentralize Governance in India: A Case Study of Uttarakhan/Mohan Singh Panwar and Sunesh Kumar Sharma. 9. Entrepreneurial Panchayat: The Vehicle of Economic Empowerment and Sustainable Rural Development/C.S. Sood.

A collection of scholarly articles in both English and Hindi by academicians, researchers and NGO leaders active at the grassroots level, the present book systematically brings out the ground realities of the new Panchayat Raj System, its contribution towards women empowerment, its impact on rural development and development management. It also presents a critical appreciation of the working of the PRIs in the mountains and puts forth concrete suggestions for charting a new approach to rural development and sustainable economic growth in remote areas. Despite its mountain context, the book contains lessons and suggestions of great relevance to those working for reinforcing grassroots democracy throughout India. (Jacket)