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: Describe the concept and evolution of decentralized planning Describe the Panchayati Raj system and the decentralization process Prepare a district profile Identify problems of a district and set planning objectives Plan a project Design implementation of a project Design monitoring and evaluation of a project Using the Module This is a self-learning module, which can be completed ideally in about 4 months. Being mature, adult learners, you will be responsible for your own learning. Thus, you can learn at your own pace, and in your own time. You are free to organise your learning to suit your own needs, study the material by yourself or with your colleagues, and set your own pace of progress. It will help if you keep an open mind and share your work experiences and interact freely with your counsellor or mentor as well as with your colleagues about questions and issues cropping up during the learning exercise. You can check your progress from time to time by doing the exercises at appropriate places in the module. This will help you in satisfying yourself that your learning is proceeding according to plan. The activities given at the end of each unit may be undertaken to reinforce your learning. The points indicated for discussion may be taken up with your colleagues/counsellor/mentor to obtain a broader perspective on the matter. It is hoped that the module will provide you with both pleasure and profit when used. To the Trainer As a trainer you will find the present module in the distance learning mode (DLM) different from the modules which are used in face-to-face (F2F) training you may be familiar with. In this module the training is designed to take place through self-learning. The trainer’s job is to organise the training and monitor it. Content The subject of the training, Decentralized Planning, is broken down into six units in the module. The first two units provide a backgrounder to decentralized planning. They deal with the concept and evolution of decentralized planning and the Panchayati Raj framework for decentralized planning. These two units aim at the knowledge area of training. The last four units aim at providing some skills to the trainees to enable them to grapple with the actual task of planning. From preparing a profile of the district to identifying problems, setting objectives, planning projects, implementing and monitoring them, this segment of the module is designed to impart the basic skills for performing the necessary tasks related to planning. Areas where professional intervention is needed have only been touched superficially as a familiarisation exercise for the trainees. Process As a trainer you will be responsible for getting nominations for the course. You must take care to collect all the contact details relating to the trainee including email address, telephone number, fax number, and postal address. As far as possible all this information should cover both his/her official and residential situations. The trainee should also be given the contact address of the trainer/mentor/counsellor. The training material may be sent to the trainees in the form of the printed module or CD or online. It should be impressed on the trainee to study the units, complete the exercise and send reports on the unit-end activities to the trainer in time. The trainer is free to design and use more assignments for assessing learning by the trainees. The trainer will send back his assessment and suggestions to the trainees. Through this on-going process of interaction the trainer will satisfy himself that learning has taken place. The entire process should be completed in 4 months. On the completion of learning, a face-to-face counselling/interaction session may be organised for about 50 trainees at a time. Certificates of completion of the course may be issued to the trainees on this occasion. The trainees may be encouraged to keep in touch with the trainer even after the completion of the course, which will help in clearing any difficulties or doubts that might creep in during actual application of the training on the job. The trainer is also welcome to introduce variations to the module depending on the changing needs of the trainees. On the whole, the trainer is to act as a facilitator for the trainees to ensure that all the training objectives are met. CONTENTS UNIT 1: CONCEPT AND EVOLUTION OF 01 – 12 DECENTRALIZED PLANNING UNIT 2: PANCHAYATI RAJ SYSTEM AND THE 13 – 31 DECENTRALIZATION PROCESS UNIT 3: DISTRICT PROFILE 32 – 62 UNIT 4: PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION AND OBJECTIVE SETTING 63 – 75 UNIT 5: PROJECT PLANNING 76 – 100 UNIT 6: PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION, 101 – 116 MONITORING & EVALUATION UNIT 1: CONCEPT AND EVOLUTION OF DECENTRALIZED PLANNING Structure 1.1. Introduction 1.2. Objectives 1.3. Concept of Decentralized Planning 1.4. Evolution of Decentralized Planning 1.4.1 The Community Development Phase 1.4.2 The Panchayati Raj Phase 1.4.3 The Special Programmes Phase 1.4.4 The District Planning Phase 1.4.5 The Panchayati Raj Revival Phase 1.5. Dimensions of Decentralized Planning 1.5.1 Functional Decentralization 1.5.2 Financial Decentralization 1.5.3 Administrative Decentralization 1.5.4 Political or Democratic Decentralization 1.6. Let Us Sum Up 1.7.