Negation of Politics in Participatory Development Projects, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh (The)

This article is based on a case study of two watershed development projects located in Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh, India. The projects failed in the eyes of author Vasudha Chhotray because she contends that "participatory development projects are legitimised by using formalistic compliance criteria, while removing politics as a context." What occurs, according to Chhotray, is an interpretation of participation as a set of practices that are far removed from politics.

According to Chhotray, the projects administered by the Kurnool District Watershed Office (KWO) attempted to achieve equity by decentralising decision-making through local watershed committees. The project sites were selected by KWO at least partly on the basis of the unity of the villages. Chhotray describes KWO as choosing to go against politics by avoiding conflicts that could delay the project. In practice, according to Chhotray, this means that these groups adjust to local power structures to secure unanimity or consensus, however superficial. This leads Chhotray to ask, "is it possible to achieve genuine participation through an emphasis on consensus and technical targets while ignoring patterns of local power and domination?"

Chhotray describes KWO’s model of participation as "based on a liberal idea of individual freedom whereby every person can make rational decisions in a neutral environment. However, it disregards the liberal idea of resolving individual differences through negotiation and compromises" since this is viewed as conflictual. Her point is that genuine participation is not achieved as long as local politics are run in such a way that existing patterns of domination and exclusion are left in place.

Chhotray suggests that participatory projects must be designed in a way that combines collective
decision-making with effective project execution. Differences and conflict must be confronted in order to
create real consensus. Further, development policy must be viewed as a political process rather than a technical one.

Chhotray concludes her article by stating his view that participatory projects accommodate and reflect existing relations of domination and control much more than their outward orientation would suggest.

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