GOPABANDHU ACADEMY OF ADMINISTRATION, ORISSA, BHUBANESWAR
DECENTRALIZED PLANNING
A Training Module (DLM) For Group E & F Functionaries
Prabhat K. Mohapatra Sponsored By:
Department of Personnel & Training Government of India
As part of a sub-programme for strengthening of State Training Institutes under the UNDP programme for Capacity Building in Public Administration.
January, 2003.
PREFACE
This training module is aimed at the Group E and F functionaries of the government working at sub-state levels. It tries to address their concerns when they are called upon to make contributions to the preparation of plans in their own areas, which has been gaining in importance with the reinvigoration of the Panchayati Raj system in the country.
The first two units of the module are a familiarization exercise for these officials with the evolution, nature and dimensions of Decentralized Planning and the Panchayati Raj system. The last four units will help them in improving some basic skills required for getting involved in the planning process. It is not forgotten that almost everyone is a planner in their own environment and might be using many of these skills without realising it. Here is an opportunity to hone and systematize them.
It is true that not every one of these functionaries will have to prepare the entire plan. There will be professionals to do that. But the module will help them in doing their own bits of work in a more systematic and efficient manner.
I have received unstinting encouragement, cooperation and help in preparing the module from the Director General, GAA, Dr. K J S Chatrath but for which it would not have been possible to complete the task. The staff at GAA has always been ready with any assistance I needed from them. I take this opportunity to record my gratitude to them. I must mention here my special gratitude to Shri Lokanath Sarangi who retired recently as Special Secretary to Govt. of Orissa in the Planning and Coordination Department. The painstaking scrutiny of this module by this ace planner has resulted in many necessary modifications in my raw draft. However, any flaws that might still lurk in the module would be entirely mine.
Shri O. P. Agarwal, IAS, Joint Secretary (Training) and Shri S. Venkatesan, Joint Director (Training), DoPT, Government of India lent their invaluable support and encouragement during the development of the module. I am immensely grateful to them for their kind patronage.
Prof. Brian Sheardown, the internationally reputed training expert, was very kind to go through the module and express his appreciation during my visit to the Thames Valley University, Slough, UK in November, 2002. His comments helped in further fine-tuning the module. I record here my gratitude to him for the gesture.
The effort that has gone into the preparation of this module will be rewarded if the trainees as well as the trainers find it interesting and useful.
Prabhat K Mohapatra
VALIDATION
The training module was validated in a workshop by:
1. Shri D.C Misra, IAS Additional Secretary to Govt. of Orissa, FS & CW Department.
2. Shri Debendra Pattnaik Reader, College of Accountancy & Management Studies, Govt. of Orissa, Cuttack
3. Dr. G. C. Kar Director, NKC Centre for Development Studies, Bhubaneswar
4. Dr. K.V.K. Pattanaik Principal, Veterinary Officers Training Institute, Govt. of Orissa, Bhubaneswar
5. Shri Lokanath Sarangi Ex- Special Secretary to Govt. of Orissa, Planning & Co-ordination Department.
6. Dr. R. K. Panda Professor of Economics, Utkal University, Vani Vihar, Bhubaneswar
7. Shri R. N. Mohanty Ex- Dy. Director (Studies), Gopabandhu Academy of Administration, Bhubaneswar.
8. Dr. Shridhar Tripathy Ex- Director, Evaluation, Planning & Co-ordination Department, Govt. of Orissa
9. Shri S. S. Pattanaik Additional Secretary to Govt. of Orissa, Finance Department.
10. Shri Swapneswara Baya, IAS Director, Panchayati Raj and Addl. Secretary to Govt. of Orissa, Panchayati Raj Department.
To the Learner
Welcome to this self-learning training course on Decentralized Planning. This module is prepared in the distance learning mode (DLM) for use by the Group E & F functionaries of different departments of government at the sub-state levels connected with decentralized planning.
Aim
The aim of this module is to provide a conceptual framework of decentralized planning for the learner and develop their competence in the use of some of the essential tools of planning.
Training Objectives
By the end of this module you will be better able to: