It is a book containing well-researched articles on local governance and grassroots development in India in general and in West Bengal in particular. All the papers seek to critically analyse the available secondary material in order to identify the issues of concern and suggest remedial measures. Primary data have, however, been generated and used to explore dynamics of the working of the grassroots democratic institutions in rural areas, with the emerging dynamics and critical issues concerning good governance and participatory development at the grassroots level.

About the Author
Prabhat Datta, is Professor, in the Department of Political Science, Calcutta University, Kolkata.

Table of Contents
Introduction Local Politics, Poverty and Decentralisation Democratic Decentralisation in India: The Emerging Challenges Decentralisation and Urban Poverty Reforms in India Rural Development through Panchayats in West Bengal Participatory Democracy in Rural West Bengal Perspectives on Urban Governance in West Bengal Institutionalising Citizens Participation in Urban West Bengal Institutional Reforms in Metropolitan Governance in Kolkata The Kolkata Metropolitan Planning Committee Peoples Participation in Forest Management in West Bengal Appendices Appendix-1 Extracts form The Task Force on Panchayati Raj, Planning Commission, New Delhi, 2001 Status of Panchayati Raj Institutions in the Country Appendix-2 Extracts from the New Horizons for West Bengals Panchayats; A Report for the Government of West Bengal, Government of West Bengal, Kolkata, Conceptual Dimensions Appendix-3 West Bengal Act XXV of 1994 Appendix-4 Government of West Bengal Urban Development Department Appendix-5 Extracts form the Relevant Sections of the West Bengal Panchayats (Amendment) Act, 1994 Index.