Rural decentralization and infant mortality among select Indian states: a preliminary analysis

ABSTRACT

In 1992 the 73rd amendment to the Indian constitution called on states to create and empower rural local governments. Despite the amendment, however, there is variation in the extent of decentralization of power from states to rural local governments in the country. How has this process of decentralization influenced health outcomes in India? The research note addresses this question by collecting preliminary data on political, administrative and fiscal decentralization and examining trends in different dimensions of decentralization and infant mortality rates among select states (Assam, Rajasthan, Kerala and Tamil Nadu) from 1994 to 2017. These states display disparities in the outcome of interest and infant mortality, and have income levels that do not explain all the variation in infant mortality trends. Preliminary results demonstrate the need to adopt a multidimensional approach toward studying the consequences of decentralization.

KEYWORDS:

• Rural governments
• decentralization
• infant mortality
• India
• federalism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 The data for most of the variables are available for this time period. However, as discussed below, the data for some of the variables (such as infrastructural capacity under administrative decentralization and measures of fiscal decentralization) are available for a more limited time period.

2 This research note draws and builds on Sadanandan’s (2017) approach toward studying decentralization comprehensively.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by SPS Research Grant, Boise State University: [Grant Number RC0053].

Notes on contributors

Nisha Bellinger

Nisha Bellinger is an Assistant Professor of Political Science in the School of Public Service at Boise State University. Her research focuses on political economic themes with a regional interest in South Asia. She is the author of Governing Human Well-Being: Domestic and International Determinants (Palgrave Macmillan 2018) and her research appears in journals such as European Political Science Review, International Political Science Review, and Journal of Politics, among others.