ABOUT THE BOOK This book is a collection of 14 essays on democratic decentralisation in Kerala; written by eminent experts from national and international arena. As the title indicates, here is an earnest attempt to bring to light the Kerala Model of Decentralisation through the lens of international perspective by juxtaposing other countries' experiences. To get an idea on Kerala's institutionalisation process of decentralisation and its distinct features compared with other States, essays from visionaries of India are also included. With a foreword by Dr.Shashi Tharoor, this book has two parts – contributions of Indian authors in part one and international authors in part two. ABOUT THE AUTHOR The editors of this book Dr.P.P.Balan and Dr.J.B.Rajan have been in the field of decentralisation; ever since the people's plan campaign in Kerala launched in 1996. Dr.Balan, winner of Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation, served as the Director of KILA in two terms and presently the Senior Consultant in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj. Dr.Rajan, with experience in research and capacity building spanning over three decades, served as Senior Faculty in KILA and presently Chief Coordinator of Research & Publication in Working Group 05 of International Sociological Association and Think-Tank Member of HLP Foundation, Bangladesh.