Does Education Make Local Elected Officials More Efficient?

Abstract

In recent past, various Indian States have enacted legislations prescribing minimum educational qualification norms for contesting elections to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs)—rural self-government bodies—claiming that this would enhance the effectiveness of these local elected officials. The current study is an attempt to investigate the conceptual basis for such an assertion through analysis of existing literature and practices. The study proposes that educational qualification has a significant direct impact on effectiveness of the elected PRI representatives. Furthermore, their educational qualification also determines the extent to which capacity-building training imparted to elected PRI representatives enhances their effectiveness as elected officials. Thus, educational qualification has been identified as both an independent/predictor variable as well as a Moderator.