Articles by Maumita Das

Given West Bengal’s fairly elaborate and unique arrangements for urban decentralisation, this paper, using primary data, examines the availability and quality of three urban basic services—water supply, drainage facilities and garbage collection facilities—in the state. The study finds that a large proportion of respondents has inadequate or almost no access to these services in the surveyed municipalities. Inequality in access to all the three services existed both among and within the municipalities. The lack of voice and capacity of the councillors belonging to the marginalised groups has reduced their influence in local governance matters, which is reflected in the comparatively lower coverage of urban services in their respective wards.