India needs a globally recognised public policy school
Context:
India, being the world’s largest democracy, still does not have a world-class public policy institution, unlike U.S. and the U.K.
Relevance:
GS-2 (Growth and development)
Background:
- Countries like the U.S. and the UK boast institutions such as the Harvard Kennedy School and the London School of Economics.
- But India’s finest minds would always choose to seek policy education abroad.
Dimensions of the Article
- About the Issue in the Article
- About Public Policy Schools
- Need for Such a School in India
- Current Challenges in the System
- Way forward
About the Issue in the Article
- Public policy institutions role in India have limited influence on the countries governance as compared to other global counterparts.
- India adopted the parliamentary form of government, where Parliament is more powerful. Hence, this centralisation in decision-making within the executive restricts opportunities for academic and civil society groups to shape policies.
About Public Policy Schools
- Globally, institutions like the Harvard Kennedy School and LSE train leaders who influence governance on national and international levels.
- These schools thrive in environments where decentralised governance allows for broader policy discussions, debate, and legislative input.
- Public policy schools in India lack similar opportunities due to limited entry points for external expertise to influence governance.
Need for Such a School in India
- India’s developmental challenges and diverse socio-political realities demand leaders with deep policy expertise tailored to the Indian context.
- An institution grounded in India’s unique power dynamics could prepare students to navigate informal networks, caste hierarchies, and regional politics.
- A top-tier policy school could nurture empathy and a grassroots understanding, ensuring policies are rooted in people’s lived realities rather than top-down directives.
Current Challenges in the System
- Centralisation of Power: The power to make decisions relies heavily with the executive, that limits the scope for legislative deliberations.
- Fragility of Influence: Frequent change in the power dynamics of the government sidelines the previously influential leaders. Hence, unlike institutionalised democracies, influence of the governments in India is closely tied to political proximity, reducing the stability of the policy ecosystem.
- Disconnect Between Politics and Policy
- The weak formalisation of governance in India relegates policy-making to a secondary role.
- Policy discussions often lack integration into larger political platforms, undermining their effectiveness.
Way Forward:
- Create a curriculum that goes beyond traditional policy theory to include India’s informal power dynamics, caste hierarchies, and regional variations.
- At the school and college levels, students should be taught to blend idealism with pragmatism, enabling them to create practical solutions for complex local issues.
- India should develop its own politically aware but non-partisan institution that fosters quality discourse and innovation across regimes.
