#186 Of Magnitude and Littleness*

<strong>India Policy Watch #1: The Anatomy of Decentralisation</strong><br/><br/><em>Insights on topical policy issues in India</em><br/><br/><em>— Pranay Kotasthane</em><br/><br/>The human-made floods in some parts of Bengaluru generated much furore. Writing about it in our previous edition, RSJ remarked:<br/><br/>The way the political economy is structured right now, it is difficult to see how there will be enough devolution of power and finances to a city. A big city most often is a bankrupt political orphan in India. It doesn’t look like changing any time soon.<br/><br/>I share his anguish. However, I remain hopeful because there are many global examples of cities first committing themselves to and <em>then</em> rescuing themselves from the tyranny of half-hearted decentralisation. <br/><br/>Decentralisation: Take 1<br/><br/>The term decentralisation is a catch-all term in public policy. There was a time when it was touted as the solution to all ills. But many PhD dissertations, journal papers, and World Bank projects later, we understand it better now. Throwing some light on this concept can help us put a finger on what’s exactly wrong with Indian cities. <br/><br/>Let’s begin by understanding the three forms of decentralisation — deconcentration, delegation, and devolution. <em>Deconcentration</em> is the simplest form of decentralisation. As the name suggests, it means decentralising functions and responsibilities. For example, if you can submit a passport application in Mysuru instead of having to come to the state capital, this function can be said to have been deconcentrated. The various government branch offices and grievance centre kiosks are examples of deconcentration. <br/><br/><em>Delegation</em> means that specific functions are carried out by another organisation or the government nearest to the citizen on behalf of the more distant government. In the Indian case, the plethora of state public sector enterprises (SPSEs) for public transport, power distribution, and water distribution are examples