ABSTRACT
The documentation for the Indo-American agreement indicated that the requirements for the program were substantial. In 1951 there was no assurance that community development would gain acceptance. As a national program, it challenged the existing bureaucracy, the status quo in the rural areas, and those favoring industrialization as the major development thrust. The post of a senior state official, the development commissioner, was established to provide an"umbrella" for the program, and the community development block was made the organizational mechanism to reallocate existing categorical resources and to receive subsequent grants. The reason was that the states viewed community development as centrally sponsored projects which were to be resisted, if they conflicted with their own priorities. On the surface, the establishment of community development as a separate ministry appeared to strengthen the program. Most obviously there was an increase in program size. As its functions and the leadership remained the same, there seemed to be little change.
