The Tamil Nadu way: How to reverse India's creeping centralisation

In this episode of InFocus by The Hindu, former IAS officer Ashokwardhan Shetty discusses the recommendations of the Justice Joseph Fakrian Committee, which was appointed by the DMK government in Tamil Nadu to examine union-state relations. The committee's report, recently tabled in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, calls for a fundamental rethinking of India's centralized constitutional structure, arguing that the current design—rooted in the British Government of India Act 1935—suffers from a deep unitarist bias. Shetty emphasizes that decentralization is not a threat to national unity but a necessity for effective, accountable governance. Drawing on philosophy, economics, systems theory, and comparative federalism, the report makes a compelling case that states should function as 'laboratories of democracy,' enabling policy innovation, resilience, and responsiveness to local needs. The episode highlights how successful national initiatives like the Midday Meal Scheme and Total Literacy Campaign originated at the state level, while centralization has failed to improve education outcomes, as evidenced by India's poor global rankings in school and university performance. Shetty also refutes common myths about centralization, including the idea that it ensures uniformity or reduces regional disparities, pointing instead to the widening gap between states like Tamil Nadu and Bihar despite decades of central planning. The report advocates for a 'second round of liberalization'—this time for states—by returning education to the state list, decentralizing power, and allowing states to experiment with tailored solutions. The episode concludes with a powerful argument that diversity, not homogenization, is India’s strength, and that true federalism requires empowering states to lead on social justice, innovation, and development.