Abstract

The paper examines the nature and performance of participatory water institutions in eastern India using structural equation modelling. There is a crisis in the management of water in India, and this is often not about having too little water but about managing it poorly. It is now being widely recognized that engineering structures and solutions are not enough, and having effective water institutions is critical. These are urgently needed in eastern India for helping lift the region out of low incomes and poverty. However, creating good institutions is complex, and in this context, the fundamentals of new institutional economics, and management governance theory have suggested the importance of a number of key factors including five institutional features and eight rationalities. Based on this, a study was conducted in eastern India, sampling from the states of Assam and Bihar, covering 510 farm households across 51 water institutions. In order to understand and map the relationship and pathways across these key factors, a structural equation model is hypothesized. In the model, the five institutional features are considered determinants of the eight rationalities, and the rationalities are considered determinants of four performance goals. The performance on the goals determines the overall performance/success of the institution. Besides this, the institutional features and rationalities can also directly influence performance on the goals and the overall performance. The model is tested with data from the survey and different pathways that are robust are identified. The results can provide useful insights into the interlinkages and pathways of institutional behavior and can help policy and institution design for delivering more robust performance. The results show that one of the most important factors determining overall performance/success is technical rationality, and this deserves great attention. It includes technical expertise, sound location and quality of structures and equipment, and good maintenance. However, success is also strongly linked to performance on production/income goals, equity, and environment goals. These are, in turn, strongly related to achievement of economic, social, technical, and organizational rationalities, which call for attention to economic aspects such as crop choice and marketing, besides social aspects such as inclusion of women and poorer social groups, and organizational aspects such as member involvement and regular meetings. Further, the institutional features of clear objectives, good interactions, adaptive, correct scale, and compliance are important for achievement of almost all rationalities through various pathways, and should be strongly focused on in all the institutions.

Highlights

  • The paper examines the nature and performance behavior of participatory water institutions in eastern India using structural equation modelling

  • This paper uses a structural equation modelling approach to examine this, bringing together the different characteristics identified by new institutional economics and management governance theories, and the various possibilities of interaction and pathways through them, to identify the critical interactions and pathways to institutional performance

  • The performance on production/income goals is in turn strongly determined by achievement of technical, economic, and organizational rationalities, and this is in line with other studies [22,23], and to institutional features of adaptiveness and compliance

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Summary

Introduction

The paper examines the nature and performance behavior of participatory water institutions in eastern India using structural equation modelling. Engineering solutions alone have proved inadequate since the difficulties lie mainly in poor institutional development and design [1,2,3,4] These result in poor water use efficiency, inequity, conflicts, reduced crop productivity, environmental cost, and substantial under-utilization of the potential created. This paper uses a structural equation modelling approach to examine this, bringing together the different characteristics identified by new institutional economics and management governance theories, and the various possibilities of interaction and pathways through them, to identify the critical interactions and pathways to institutional performance. It discusses the concepts derived from management governance theory that are used to explain the performance behavior of water institutions.

New Institutional Economics and Governance
Survey Data and Sample Profile
Assessment on Institutional Features
Assessment on Rationalities
Assessment of the Performance of the Water User Associations
Research Methods
Structural
Structural Equation Modelling Map
Structural Equation Model Fit
10. Conclusions
Full Text
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