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Changing Contexts and Shifting Roles of the Indian State pp 105–125Cite as

Social Protection and the State in India: The Challenge of Extracting Accountability

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Part of the book series: Dynamics of Asian Development ((DAD))

Abstract

In the aftermath of the Asian Financial Crisis (AFC) in 1997, some observers pronounced the demise of the developmental state . This view has recently been challenged by scholars who argue that rather than the demise of the developmental state , the role of the state has been reconfigured in the post-AFC period to meet new economic challenges and social demands. The provision of more inclusive social protection by the state is now a significant consideration. This paper will examine the role of the state in social protection in India with reference to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) which was introduced through an Act of Parliament in 2005. There are two distinguishing features of MGNREGS : it guarantees employment as a legal right, and through the provision for mandatory social audits by the beneficiaries of the scheme, it promises accountability from below. However, it is arguable whether the state has demonstrated a capacity to deliver effectively on its rights-based programme. This chapter raises the central question: What does the implementation of MGNREGS reveal about the capacity of the state to provide social protection and accountability in contemporary India? The discussion cautions against viewing the state as a homogenous entity.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    In this paper where there is reference to the state at the centre it is spelt with capital ‘S’.

  2. 2.

    MGNREGS refers to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Scheme as distinct from MNREGA which is a reference to the Act (of Parliament).

  3. 3.

    However, in 2012–2013 the scheme’s budget accounted for just 0.28% of GDP (Fultz and Francis 2013: 11) which represented a drop from the financial year 2010–2011 when the expenditure on the scheme was 0.51% of GDP (World Bank 2012: 271).

  4. 4.

    One estimate claims the ‘poorest Indians’ comprise roughly one-third of the country’s total population , that is, about 400 million people (Dreze and Sen 2013: 87). Estimates of poverty in India, however, are highly contested, and a recent World Bank report that uses a different methodology shows that the incidence of poverty in India has been overestimated (Misra 2015). Notwithstanding what methodology is applied, millions in India still live in poverty .

  5. 5.

    The fieldwork was conducted jointly with Professor D. Rajasekhar and R. Manjula who are both based at the Institute for Social and Economic Change in Bangalore.

  6. 6.

    Refer to Rajasekhar et al. (2013) for detailed results of this fieldwork.

  7. 7.

    By contrast in some states, it is the gram sabhas or village assemblies (of which all adults are members) that are responsible for undertaking social audits .

  8. 8.

    In his later study, Kohli (2012: 3, 42–43) argues that since the 1980s, the relationship between the State and business (particularly the large business houses) has become much closer whereby the latter enjoys a dominant status in the economy which has, on the one hand, promoted economic growth but, on the other hand, also restricted redistribution of the benefits of growth (see Matthew Chap. 5 in this volume).

  9. 9.

    Whereas previously Evans (1995) emphasized the importance of capital accumulation and links between the state and industrial capital in defining the developmental state , subsequently there was a shift in emphasis whereby the capacity of the state in promoting human development became a more relevant consideration (Evans and Heller 2014).

  10. 10.

    Kwon argues that Asian countries have followed different social policies confronted by AFC. Hong Kong and Singapore took a more conservative approach by offering selective welfare , whereas South Korea and Taiwan have adopted a ‘more inclusive welfare state model’ (2009: S15).

  11. 11.

    In South Korea , it rose from 2.15 to 5.28% from 1986 to 1996 and in Taiwan from 2.92% in 1986 to 5.84% in 1997 (Ramesh 2003: 87).

  12. 12.

    Explained simply, social protection index is represented by ‘the ratio of total social protection expenditures to total intended beneficiaries’ (ADB 2013: 6). Social protection expenditures comprise expenditures on social insurance, social assistance and labour market programmes. For cross-national comparison, poverty line expenditures are also taken into account (ADB 2013: 7). A higher index figure indicates better performance.

  13. 13.

    GPs are the lowest tier of local government in rural India with the zilla parishad or district council occupying the top tier and the taluk representing the intermediate level.

  14. 14.

    One crore equals ten million.

  15. 15.

    The discussion here is based upon information from the fieldwork (except where indicated otherwise) conducted in 2011 and 2012 with Professor D. Rajasekhar and R. Manjula, and from other published sources related to Karnataka .

  16. 16.

    Information provided by an academic acquaintance working at ISEC whose home is in Bangalore Rural District. The discussion was held in Bangalore in November 2012.

  17. 17.

    Interview held in Bangalore in November 2012.

  18. 18.

    For detailed results of the survey, refer to Lakha et al. (2015).

  19. 19.

    VMC has nine members, five of whom have to be labourers, and it should also have some women members though the exact number is not specified. The members are selected from the ward sabha which is the village-level electoral constituency.

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  1. University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

    Salim Lakha

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  1. College of Business, The University of Alabama, Huntsville, AL, USA

    Anthony P. D’Costa

  2. Director and Professor of Economics, Institute of Development Studies Kolkata, Kolkata, India

    Achin Chakraborty

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Lakha, S. (2019). Social Protection and the State in India: The Challenge of Extracting Accountability. In: D’Costa, A., Chakraborty, A. (eds) Changing Contexts and Shifting Roles of the Indian State. Dynamics of Asian Development. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-6891-2_6

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