The Role of Village Panchayats and Village Development Councils in Rural Development

Contents: Preface. Acknowledgements. 1. Conception of Participatory development and its necessity in the development of rural India. 2. Significance of the Pindiprolu Study and methodology. 3. Historical background of Pindiprolu. 4. Village local government (VP) in Pindiprolu since 1959 and the formation of village development council (VDC) in 1981. 5. Formation of grassroots institutions and development of social capital in Pindiprolu. 6. Finances for coproduction: community asset formation. 7. Changing overall conditions in Pindiprolu: 1981-2006. 8. Dynamics of economic and non-economic conditions in Pindiprolu on sample households in the period 1993-2006. 9. Conclusions and message of Pindiprolu. Bibliography.

This book brings out the message of Pindiprolu, that the participatory development really works in the village level if the village panchayat (VP) as local self-government (LG) and village development council (VDC) as community based organisation (CBO) are synergised. The village panchayat (VP) is generally mandatory. Whereas the VDC is only non-statutory body. In Pindiprolu, in 1981, when the panchayat elections took place, the panchayat has been swayed by the party, CPI (ML-ND), with 8 seats out of 12 in 1988, the party was unanimous. Thereafter in every panchayat election, the party has been successful in majority seats. In 1981, the VP did not have much budgetary sources. To mobilize funds for development, the VDC was formed and then the VDC dominated the scene by getting funds from the liquor contractors. The VDC (as a CBO) and the VIP (as an LG) have acted together in forming village level assets. The coproduction strategy, professed in the international participatory development literature through FAO and WB by the early 1980s, has been implemented in Pindiprolu since 1981, on an increasing scale, without any relation with that literature. The book analyses several unique aspects of Pindiprolu, covering two surveys in 1993 and 2006: (i) the participatory process by peoples involvement, (ii) the development of strong social capital through political ideology, (iii) the coproduction strategy, and (iv) the asset formation.