Research status of public administration: Retrospect and prospects

The present paper discusses the growth and development of Public Administration discipline in general and explores the research status of Public Administration on the basis of studies conducted by scholars of the Department of Public Administration, Kururkshetra University Kurukshetra and suggests suitable measures for improving the research status so that it may significantly contribute to the social sciences research. A close examination of the reports, thesis and dissertations clearly shows that most of the studies dealt with institutions and their working. The research has been mostly descriptive, seldom, prescriptive and has recommended halfhearted reforms in the administrative set-up. It has been aptly observed that their diagnosis of issues, challenges and problems are symptomatic, rarely clinical and generally shun radical prescriptions. The research studies focused on Politics, Rural Industrialization, Irrigation, Health, Public Enterprises, Agriculture, Cooperation, Planning, Social and Labour Welfare, Urban Governance, Women and Child Development, HRD, Poverty Alleviation, Environmental Administration, Housing, Informal Justice System, Drugs, Sports, Water Supply, Education, R.T.I, PRIs, Policing, Fish Faming etc. As many as 57.7 per cent studies were conducted covering state, 32 per cent on district level, 3.1 per cent each at national, inter-state and inter district levels. The studies were localized and ignored comparative aspects. In majority cases, average method was used and statistical techniques were hardly used to authenticate the conclusions drawn. There is an urgent need of theorization of Public Administration.