Some Aspects of State–NGO Relationships in India in the Post‐Independence Era

This article discusses some aspects of state–NGO relationships in India at the central and local levels from 1947 onwards. It draws its analytical framework from studies which incorporate organizational complexities and characteristics, political, social, and economic realities, associational cultures of individual countries, and human agency in analysing state–NGO relationships. It examines the applicability to India of some propositions on state–NGO relationships which are found in the literature. The author argues that there are observable differences in state–NGO relationships in various localities; these are illustrated through a set of case studies of local state–NGO interactions in the context of housing and land policies for the urban poor. Despite these differences, however, the author argues that the relationship at the local level can be generally characterized by the hostility of politicians, party workers, local élites, lower level bureaucrats, and lower level employees of the state toward NGO activity.