#94 Reforms: Caught Consensus, Bowled Hubris

This newsletter is really a weekly public policy&#160;thought-letter. While excellent newsletters on specific themes within public policy already exist, this thought-letter is about frameworks, mental models, and key ideas that will hopefully help you think about any public policy problem in imaginative ways. It seeks to answer just one question:&#160;how do I think about a particular public policy problem/solution?<br/><br/>PS: If you enjoy listening instead of reading, we have this edition available as an audio narration courtesy the good folks at&#160;<a href="https://www.ad-auris.com/">Ad-Auris</a>. If you have any feedback, please send it to us.<br/><br/>PolicyWTF:&#160;What Broke the Constitution&#8217;s Seventh Schedule?<br/><br/>This section looks at egregious public policies. Policies that make you go: WTF, Did that really happen?<br/><br/>&#8212; Pranay Kotasthane<br/><br/>The Seventh Schedule of the Consitution has three lists scoping out the responsibilities of the parliament and the state legislatures. List I contains the subject-matters over which the parliament has exclusive power to make laws (defence, foreign affairs, banking etc.). List II does the same for state legislatures (health, public order, water, land, agriculture). List III contains subject-matters on which both the parliament and state legislatures can legislate (education, forests etc.). <br/><br/>Looks neat. Except that this assignment of powers hasn&#8217;t stopped union governments from designing and funding hundreds of schemes that squarely fall under List II &#8212; National Health Mission, Swachch Bharat Mission, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, to name a few. You would imagine that these schemes, known as Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS), would be opposed tooth and nail by state governments, right? <br/><br/>Wrong. We&#8217;ve reached a low-level equilibrium where the state governments have grudgingly reconciled to the reality of CSS. They oppose it on paper or complain to Finance Commissions but are also happy to receive funds as