The Illusion of Collaboration and Bureaucratic Politics in India

Syracuse University SURFACE Dissertations - ALL SURFACE May 2016 The Illusion of Collaboration and Bureaucratic Politics in India Harish Pranav Jagannath Syracuse University Follow this and additional works at: https://surface.syr.edu/etd Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Jagannath, Harish Pranav, "The Illusion of Collaboration and Bureaucratic Politics in India" (2016). Dissertations - ALL. 438. https://surface.syr.edu/etd/438 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the SURFACE at SURFACE. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations - ALL by an authorized administrator of SURFACE. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Abstract This dissertation studies an instance of collaborative governance (called Maarpu ) in a subnational government in India (Andhra Pradesh). Through an in-depth case study the dissertation examines the implementation of Maarpu’s antecedents, processes and outcomes. At the outset, the study begins to understand India’s bureaucratic functioning from a historical perspective and takes an organizational theory approach to understanding how organizational structures influence the decisions that organizational actors make. The single biggest finding and contribution of this study to collaborative governance literature is that collaborative structures are not necessarily designed for the mutual benefit of actors and institutions involved; rather, they are the result of the politics of bureaucratic structures that are designed to create winners and losers. I refer to this as the bureaucratic-collaboration paradigm. The study argues that this is the result of bureaucratic politics that infiltrates organizational structures and functioning. The study finds that policy and administrative entrepreneurs in positions of public authority influence the structure of collaborative initiatives creating a certain perception to take shape within the implementation hierarchy. The perception that Maarpu is a health-related initiative and not a collaborative initiative percolated through the implementation hierarchy and existing power balances, turf battles and institutional rivalries between participating departments helped maintain that perception. Findings from this revelatory case provide insights to refine theory, guide practice, and design better collaborative initiatives. THE ILLUSION OF COLLABORATION AND BUREAUCRATIC POLITICS IN INDIA by Harish Pranav Jagannath B.S., Oregon State University, 2005 M.P.A, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, 2007 Dissertation Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration . Syracuse University May 2016 Copyright © Harish Pranav Jagannath 2016 All Rights Reserved For my parents In loving memory of my mother, queen of her species, for always believing that I can aspire to greater heights. To my father, for betting on me against all odds. To you both, I am ever grateful. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS No amount of gratitude is sufficient to thank those near and dear to me who have helped me come this far in the journey of my life. First, I would like to thank all those incredible individuals that helped me through the course of my fieldwork and made this dissertation a reality; without their participation there would have been no story to write about. The bureaucratic organizations and the actors within them debunked the stereotype of rigidity and secrecy. Not only did each department open up to me, but provided insights I would never learned otherwise. I hope this dissertation can serve as a fitting tribute to all of India’s civil service bureaucracy. Far from a rusted steel frame, I now consider India’s civil service bureaucracy a knight in shining armor! In particular, I want to thank Kumar—a local college lad who was introduced to me by a district official who would take me around to the villages. Kumar, I am not exaggerating when I say that without you there would be no data for this dissertation. In this process, Kumar learnt a lot about case study research and I began understanding the realities of rural India. I must also thank members of my dissertation committee: David Van M. Slyke, Tina Nabatchi, John McPeak, Rosemary O’Leary, and Jeremy Shiffman. I can proudly say my dissertation was guided by the best public administration scholars of the world. They were tough, rigorous, encouraging, critical, skeptical, and above all they were patient with me through all the two years that I collected data and wrote the dissertation. Professor David M. Van Slyke, as Chair of the committee, was a pillar of strength and his relentless efforts at pushing me to think analytically about all the interesting stories I was documenting finally resulted in insights that would never have come about without his insistence that I think more deeply. More than a Chair of the dissertation committee, I am grateful for his role as my academic mentor since the first day v of my doctoral studies here at the Maxwell School. Professor Van Slyke, thank you so much for tirelessly listening to my stories about the Indian bureaucracy and all its quirkiness. You inspire me to be an enthusiastic teacher, a thorough researcher, and overall to be an academic everybody can look up to. I must thank each and every committee member for their feedback on the chapters and for always believing that I had an interesting story to tell. I am ever grateful to Professor Tina Nabatchi for working closely with me on all drafts of the dissertation chapters—not only was feedback detailed, it was also helpful in enabling me to keep moving forward. Professor John McPeak understood the reality of conducting fieldwork in a country like India and I benefitted greatly from his practical advice. Even though Professor Jeremy Shiffman was not at the Maxwell School when I got here, his name was always linked to anything relating to India or maternal health-related research. He was so kind to agree to serve as a member of my committee and I greatly benefitted from his expertise. And finally, my dissertation draws its inspiration from the legend herself, Professor Rosemary O’Leary. I was lucky to be the last cohort at the Maxwell School to take her organizational theory seminar before she moved to Kansas. Professor O’Leary—you encouraged us to not just open up a can of data, but to go out there and be creative. That phrase stuck in my mind and I believe that is exactly what I did. Thank you so much for blessing my work. In addition to my dissertation committee, there are other institutions and individuals I must acknowledge that helped me with the journey leading up to the dissertation. I must thank the Campbell Institute, which provided me with two grant awards that helped with the initial stages of fieldwork. My colleagues Anoop Sadanandan, Zach Huitink, and David Berlan at the Maxwell School for their honest feedback about my research ideas. I want to thank Forrest D. vi Fleischman for his enthusiastic support of my dissertation’s goal of trying to understand the black hole that India’s bureaucratic structures are. Going back in time, I am grateful to the Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) where I served as a faculty member. My experience at ASCI gave me the confidence and courage one needs to boldly sail into the depths of India’s civil service bureaucracy. I am ever grateful to all my mentors at ASCI who insisted that I spend no more than three years and then go back to U.S. for pursing my PhD. I did just that and I am thankful to Professors Usha Vyasulu Reddi (who was a great boss and trained me well in handling projects with the government) and Gautam Pingle (who was the first one to share his enthusiasm that I now have an opportunity to study Paul H. Appleby’s reports on India). At the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), I remember what my advisor Professor Eric Wright told me about what does it take to do a PhD—patience and perseverance. I save my final words of gratitude for my friends and family. The first person I must thank is my wife, Sarada, who for five years participated in the processes of my doctoral education along with me on a daily basis. Needless to say, when I finally defended the dissertation she was more relieved than me and celebrated more than I did. I was always told the life of a doctoral student is lonely and uneventful. I can honestly say, that in these five years, thanks to my wife I actually had a social life and quite frankly helped me keep my sanity. Sarada, you made it a point to make smoothies in morning and provide freshly cooked meals for lunch and dinners—as silly as it sounds, and although I cannot empirically prove it, you provided the nutrition to my dissertation and helped complete it. You shared in every stress I experienced, you listened to every story and interpretation of my research findings, gave me your honest feedback, and always ensured that I keep moving forward. Thank you for unwavering confidence in me. vii Other friends and family members also supported me throughout this journey and I drew a great amount of encouragement from them. Sundari Auntie provided to me and my wife a home away from home in New Jersey. My father-in-law, Vijayakumar Uncle, for with me discussing about his understanding of India’s bureaucracy and its connections to the social milieu. Himakar Uncle, thank you so much for your encouragement and seeing your doctoral dreams being fulfilled through me; and for helping me with the initial stages of my fieldwork. My brother, Gautam, always an idealist, genuinely believed that I have the ability to make a difference and contribute to India’s development through my research and teaching.

Load more