Professor Sam Bowles of the Massachusetts University said from his own experience that in most of the countries of the world the poor were not the beneficiaries of economic development .Democracy in those countries have turned out to be a mere showpiece, he said adding "We have become the victims of despondence.’’ Professor Bowles emphasized that West Bengal has given a lie to such despondence. He was in favour of discussion of the West Bengal model for ensuring social justice in different forums of the world. Professor Bowles is the son of the former U.S. ambassador to India, Mr. Chester Bowles.

Earlier inaugurating the seminar, Chief Minister Jyoti Basu elaborated on the outlines of the policy of decentralisation. He said that the Left Front after assuming power decided to go in for land reforms. Thereafter, the panchayat elections which were long over due, were held.

Taking cue from the Chief Minister , Professor Pranab Bardhan in his address at the seminar said, from the Mughal period power was highly concentrated at the Centre. The same phenomenon continues even after the post-independence period. West Bengal during the Left Front rule was an exception with land reforms undertaken at the very outset elsewhere. There was decentralisation of power following the panchayat elections. Professor Bardhan said that the vested interests controlled the panchayats. In West Bengal the grip of the vested elements in the panchayats had been curbed to a great extent. At the same time Professor Bardhan referred to some problems the panchayats or the local bodies might face. Though distribution of funds at the lower levels were good emphasis should be land on mobilisation of resources at these lower levels. As in China , local bodies or local administration can be vested with the task of industrialisation of their respective areas.

The Nobel Laureate economist Professor Amartya Sen said all over the world no assessment of success could be made of an economy being dominated by the private ownership or public management .But from his experience he said successs was attainable in an atmosphere of competition. The prerequisite for success of a decetralized economy was democracy and the full acceptance of the right to information. There should be unhindered right to expression and decision-making at the local levels, otherwise full utilization of the potential at local levels could not be had. Professor Sen said uncritical decentralisation and only local level administarion, the problems of fundamental nature could not be countered; for he felt that in many cases the root of discrimination lay in the local characteristics itself. Only a central authority could successfully help strike at this root. For example, he said that a decision on the reservation of seats for women in Parliament and in the State legislature could be taken only by the Centre.

Mr Ashim Dasgupta , State ‘s Finance Minister and also an economist, said in the midst of worldwide controversy over whether a controlled economy or one of liberalisation would deliver the goods, decentralisation of power could be a tool for ushering in progress.