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44

VOL16

GIST OF KURUKSHETRA

KURUKSHETRA
PANCHAYATI RAJ
THREE TIER SYSTEM IN INDIA
The Panchayati Raj is a South Asian Political
system mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and
Nepal. The world Panchayat literally means
assembly of five wise and respected elders chosen
and accepted by the local community.
Panchayati Raj is a system of governance in
which gram Panchayats are the basic units of
administration. Mahatma Gandhi advocated
Panchayati Raj, a decentralized form of government.
It is the oldest system of local government in the
Indian sub continent. This system was adopted by
state governments during the 1950s and 60s as laws
were passed to establish Panchayats in various states.
It also found backing in Indian constitution with the
73rd Amendment in 1922 to accommodate the idea.
In the history of Panchayati Raj in India, on 24th April,
1993, the constitution (73rd Amendment) Act 1992
came into force to provide constitutional status to
the Panchayati Raj institutions.

The Three-Tier System of Panchayati Raj

in India
The states of Goa, Jammu and Kashmir,
Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Sikkim have twotier Panchayats one at the village level and the
second at the zila or District level. In all other states
Panchayati Raj is a three-tier system-village as first
level, block or janapad as second level and zila or
district as the third level.

Village Level
Village is the basic unit of Panchayati Raj
Institutions. It is generally a revenue unit. The unit
of local government here is called village Panchayat.

In the structure of the Panchayati Raj, the village

Panchayat is the lowest unit. The Panchayat chiefly
consists of representatives elected by the people of
the village.
Only the persons who are registered as voters
and do not hold any office of profit under the
government are eligible for election to the
Panchayat. The persons convicted by the court for
criminal offences are disqualified from election of the
Panchayat.
There is also provision for co-option of two
women and one member of the Scheduled Castes
and Scheduled Tribes, if they do not get adequate
representation in the normal course.
The Panchayat as a body is accountable to the
general body of the village known as Gram Sabha
which meets at least twice a year. The Gram
Panchayat must present its budget, accounts of the
previous year and annual administrative report
before the Gram Sabha. Furthermore, it has to
secure the latters approval of the village production
plan, proposals for taxation and development
programmes before they are enforced by the
Panchayat.
Every Panchayat elects a president or Sarpanch
and a Vice-President or Up-Sarpanch. The Sarpanch
occupies a pivotal position in gram Panchayat system.
He supervises and coordinates the various activities
of the Panchayat. The Panchayat secretary and the
village level worker are the two officers at the
Panchayat level to assist the Sarpanch in
administration

Functions
1. Mandatory Function: Sanitation,
conservancy and drainage, prevention of

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GIST OF KURUKSHETRA

VOL16

public nuisances, drinking water,

construction and maintenance of village
roads, public buildings, registration of births
and deaths, maintenance of cremation and
burial grounds, rural electrification, poverty
alleviation programme, preparation of
annual budget and development plans,
construction and maintenance of cattle
sheds, ponds etc. social farm forestry, fuel
and fodder, slaughter focuses, public parks
and playgrounds, agriculture, poultry and
fisheries etc.
2. Discretionary Functions: Agriculture,
animal husbandry and dairy development,
minor irrigation, small scale industries,
housing, electricity and non-conventional
energy, rural development programmes,
education cultural affairs and heritage, public
health etc.

Source of Revenue
A gram Panchayat fund has been created on
the pattern of consolidated fund of the state. All
money received by the Gram Panchayat like
contribution of grants made by the State
Government, Union Government, Zila Parishad and
all sums received by the Panchayat in the form of
taxes, rates, duties, fees, loans, fines and penalties,
compensation, court decree, sale proceeds and
income from Panchayat etc. go into that fund.
Village Panchayats have been empowered to
levy taxes of fees on subjects like houses and
buildings, professions, trades, callings and
employments, fees on registration of vehicles, fairs
and meals, sanitary arrangement, water, tax, lighting
tax, tax on sale of firewood.

Block Level
Block or Union is the second or intermediate
level of local self government in rural India. It has
been named differently in different states. In Andhra
Pradesh, it is known as Mandal Parishad, in Assam, it
is known as Anchalik Panchayat, in Bihar, Jharkhand,
Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Tripura, West Bengal,
Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab and Rajasthan t is
known as Panchayat Samiti ad so on.

45

Usually, a Panchayat Samiti consists of 20 to

60 villages depending on area and population. The
Panchayat Samiti generally consists of the following:
1. About twenty members elected by and from
the Panches of all the Panchayats falling in
the block area.
2. Two women members and one member
each from the Scheduled Castes and
Scheduled Tribes to be co-opted.
3. Two local persons possessing experience of
public administration, which may be
beneficial for the rural development.
4. Representatives of the co-operatives
working within the jurisdiction of the block.
5. One representative elected by and form the
members of each small municipality lying
within the geographical limits of a block.
6. The members of the State and Union
legislatures representing the area are to be
taken as associate members.
The President of the Panchayat Samiti is the
Pradhan, who is elected by an electoral college
consists of all members of the Panchayat Samiti and
all the Panchas of the Gram Panchayat falling within
the panchas areas. Besides the Pradhan, the Uppradhan is also elected. The Pradhan convenes and
presides over the Panchayats in making plans and
carrying out production programmes. He ensures
the implementation of the decision and resolutions
of the Samiti and its standing committees. He
exercises administrative control over the Vikas
Adhikari (BDO) and his staff. He is a member of the
Zila Parishad by virtue of his office as a Pradhan. He
is the ex-officio chairman of the standing committees
of the Samiti.
As the Chief Executive Officer of the Panchayat
Samiti, the Block Development Officer is entrusted
with the responsibility for implementing the
resolutions of the Samiti and its Standing
Committees. He prepares the budget of the Samiti
and places it before the Samiti for approval.
Preparing the annual report of the Samiti and
sending it to the Zila Parishad and State Government
also comes within the purview of his responsibility.
He is accountable to the president of the Samiti for
his action.

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46

VOL16

GIST OF KURUKSHETRA

Functions

Source of Revenue

The principal function of the Panchayat Samiti

is to co-ordinate the activities of the various
Panchayats within its jurisdiction. The Panchayat
Samiti supervises the work of the Panchayats and
scrutinizes their budgets. It also reserves the right to
suggest measures for improving the functioning of
the Panchayats. The Samiti is charged with the
responsibility of preparing and implementing plans
for the development of agriculture, animal
husbandr y, fisheries, small scales and cottage
industries, rural health etc.

The legislation of all states provide for the

certain of separate Zila Parishad/District Panchayat
Fund which is like the consolidated Fund of the State.
The sources of income of the Zila Parishad / District
Panchayat are:
(i) Grants-in-aid given by the State
Government and the Union Government
(general or for any particular project)
(ii) Donations and incomes like rent or lease or
sale proceeds of the properties of the
Parishad.
(iii) Toll, fees or cess imposed on bridges, ferries,
entertainment, fairs, haats etc.
(iv) Share of the land revenue assigned to the
Parishad.
(v) Several states like U.P., Punjab, Manipur,
Maharashtra etc. have empowered them to
levy taxes on any matter on which Panchayats
at the lower levels are empowered to do.
(vi) Loans raised by it against the security of its
properties.
(vii) Contributions made by Panchayat Samitis
or any other local authority.

District Level
Generally, the Zila Parishad consist of
representatives of the Panchayat Samiti, all members
of the State Legislative and the Parliament
representing a part or whole of the district, all
district level officers of the medical, Public Health,
Public Works, Engineering, Agriculture, Education
and other development departments.
There is also a provision for special
representation of women, members of Scheduled
Casts and Scheduled Tribes provided they are not
adequately represented in the normal course. The
collector is also a member of the Zila Parishad.
The term of each District Panchayat is five
years unless dissolved earlier. In most of the States
their meeting must be held at least once in three
months. However, in Goa, Haryana and Karnataka
their meetings must be called at least once in two
months.

Functions
The Zila Parishad, performs coordinating and
supervisory functions. It co-ordinates the activities of
the Panchayat Samiti falling within its jurisdiction. In
certain states the Zila Parishad also approves the
budgets of the Panchayat Samitis.
The Zila Parishad also renders necessary advice
to the Government with regard to the
implementation of the various development
schemes. It is also responsible for the maintenance of
primary and secondary schools, hospitals,
dispensaries, minor irrigation works etc. It also
promotes local industries and art.

GOVERNMENT PROGRAMME
TO EMPOWER PANCHAYATI RAJ
To accelerate rural development process,
Government legislated the 73rd Amendment Act,
1992, which became the Panchayati Raj law on April
24, 1993. Since then it became mandatory to involve
local people and Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) to
implement Government schemes and make them
responsible to achieve the underlying objectives. The
Law stipulated reservation for women and
disadvantaged section of the community, which
created a space for them to be assertive and demand
their rightful share in the decision-making at the
local level. The 73 rd Amendment to the Indian
Constitution (1992) has made Panchayats the third
tier of the Indian political system. Earlier we had only
two tires-the Union Government and the State
Governments. Now we have three tires-the
Panchayats at the village block and district levels. The
year 2009-10 had been declared as the year of Gram
Sabha being the 50th anniversary of launching of
Panchayati Raj in our country.

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GIST OF KURUKSHETRA

VOL16

Panchayati Raj System in India

1. B.R. Mehta Committee: The Panchayat
were a subject of study by a number of
committees and study teams starting with
the B.R. Mehta Committee recommending
a three-tier Panchayati Raj structure.
2. L.M. Singhvi Committee: In 1986 the L.M.
Singhvi Committee studied Panchayati Raj,
and suggested that Gram Sabha be the base
of a decentralized democracy and Panchayati
Raj Institutions (PRIs) viewed as institutions
of self-governance which would actually
facilitate participation of people in the
process of planning and development. It also
recommended constitutional recognition of
local self-government and inclusion of a new
chapter in the Constitution for this purpose.
The 73rd Amendment included the Gram
Sabha as the basis of the three-tier
Panchayati Raj. Constitutional provisions,
however, related to the establishment,
power, functions and responsibilities of the
Panchayats have been introduced through
the 73rd Amendment in 1993 for the country
as a whole following the recommendations
of L.M. Singhvi Committee.
Statutory Panchayats: The Statutory
Panchayats were created by law. These laws are given
as follows:
1. Royal Commission on Decentralization
(1907): These owe their origin to the Report
of the Royal Commission had recommended
the creation of village Panchayats for
reducing the financial burden of the
provincial governments and for extending
the concept of local self government to the
village level.
2. Mayos Resolution (1870) and Ripon
Resolution (1882): The Mayos Resolution
(1870) had created the municipalities in the
urban areas and the Ripon Resolution
(1882) the district board at the district level
and the rural self government institutions.
3. Village Panchayat Act (1912): The
objective of this Act was to strengthen the
Panchayats both as units of Local Self

47
Government and as judicial bodies. However,
the enactment of this act failed to have the
desired results. This happened because the
Panchayats setup under this act had neither
a real representative character nor any
element of autonomy. Secondly, those who
were responsible for executing it, too could
not be spared from their due share of blame.
The failure may partly be attributed to the
lack of sincerity on their part. Thirdly, the
blame may also be squarely placed on people
who exhibited much apathy for this
institution.

Government Programme for

Empowerment of Panchayati Raj
1. Powers of Gram Sabha through
Panchayats Act, 1996 (PESA): The
Provision of Panchayats (Extension to
Scheduled Areas) Act 1996 (PESA) extends
Part IX of the Constitution with certain
modifications and exceptions, to the Fifth
Schedule areas of 9 States viz. Andhra
Pradesh (AP), Chhattisgarh, Gujarat,
Himachal Pradesh (HP), Maharashtra,
Odisha and Rajasthan. The Gram Sabhas
under PESA are deemed to the competent
to safeguard and preserve the traditions of
the people, community resources and
customary mode of dispute resolution. The
Gram Sabhas further have:
(i) Mandatory executive functions to
approve plans of the Village
Panchayats, identify beneficiaries for
schemes, issue certificates of
utilization of funds.
(ii) Right to mandatory consultation in
matter of land acquisition,
resettlement and rehabilitation and
prospecting licenses/mining leases
for minor minerals.
(iii) Power to prevent alienation of land
and restore alienated land.
(iv) Power to regulate and restrict sale/
consumption of liquor.
(v) Power to manage village markets,

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48

VOL16
control money lending to STs.
Ownership of minor forest produce.
Power to control institutions and
functionaries in all social sectors.
(viii) Power to control local plans and
resources for such plans including
TSP, etc.
2. Panchayat Mahila Evam Yuva Shakti
Abhiyan (PMEYSA): Participation of
women in the Panchayats was facilitated by
the 73rd Constitutional Amendment which
mandated one-third reservation of seats at
all three tiers of Panchayats for women. The
Panchayat Mahila Evam Yuva Shakit Abhiyan
aims to build on the substantial
representation of women and youth in
Panchayats so that they use their collective
strength more effectively. It supports the
efforts of the many isolated, strengthen their
unity and provide a forum for continued
training. PMEYSA provides women with
specific kinds of support which goes beyond
the usual training given to PRI
representatives.
3. Panchayat Empowerment and
Accountability Incentive Scheme
(PEAIS): The Panchayat Empowerment and
Accountability Incentive Scheme (PEAIS) is
a Central Sector Plan Scheme implemented
by the MoPR since 2005-06. The scheme aims
at encouraging states to adequately
empower Panchayats and put in place
systems for bringing about accountability of
the PRIs. Performance of states in these
respects in measured through a Devolution
Index (DL).
4. e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project
(MMP): MoPR has been adopting a multipronged strategy to implement the
provisions of Part IX of the Constitution in
the true spirit of cooperative federalism. One
major strategy has been to harness the
potential
of
Information
and
Communication Technology (ICT) tools for
e-Governance in Panchayats. The objective
is to make Panchayats more efficient,
(vi)
(vii)

GIST OF KURUKSHETRA
transparent and symbols of modernity by
leveraging ICT at the cutting edge level to
ensure transparency and accountability in
their functioning through disclosure of
information, social audit, efficient delivery
of services and improving internal processes
and management of Panchayats.
5. Rajiv Gandhi Panchayat Sasktikaran
Abhiyan: RGPSA seeks to enhance
capacities and effectiveness of Panchayats
and Gram Sabha and enable democratic
decision making and accountability in
Panchayats and promote people s
participation.

PRIs and Centrally Sponsored Schemes

for Poverty Alleviation
1. Accelerated Rural Water Supply Program
(ARWSP) and Swajaldhara: The main
programme of the Central Government
related to drinking water supply is the
Accelerated Rural Water Supply Program
(ARWSP) and Swajaldhara. ARWSP is aimed
at ensuring a minimum availability of 40
Litres of water per capita per day (LPCD) to
all rural people. Swajaldhara is a demand
driven approach to augmenting water
supply, with a high degree of local
participation. ARWSP is now part of the
Bharat Nirman Approach, with a time bound
strategy of tackling all habitations that are
deficient in water supply.
2. Total Sanitation Campaign: The Total
Sanitation Compaign aims at providing
subsidized individual and community
latrines, so as to completely eliminate openair defecation. The program has now added
solid waste management as another
component of the program.
3. National Rural Health Mission: The
National Rural Health Mission (NRHM
2005-2012) has been launched to improve
availability of and access to quality health
care and public health services, including
womens health, child health, water,
sanitation and hygiene, immunization, and

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GIST OF KURUKSHETRA

VOL16

nutrition by rural people, through making

necessary changes in the mechanism of health
delivery. The goals of the mission are to
reduce infant Mortality Rate (IMR) and
Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) and
prevent and control communicable and noncommunicable diseases.
4. Integrated Child Development
Programme: ICDS promotes integrated
child development through converging basic
services for improved child care, early
stimulation and learning, improved
enrolment and retention, health and
nutrition, and water and environmental
sanitation. The Scheme aims at improving
the nutritional and health status of preschool children, pregnant women and
nursing mothers.
5. Indira Awas Yojana: The Indira Awas
Yojana (IAY) is the sole program that deals
with housing for the poor from the
Government of India. This program gives a
100 percent subsidy, capped at Rs. 25,000
per unit per unit for providing houses to

49
families below the poverty line. Beneficiaries
are to construct the house and payments
are made directly to the beneficiary, on the
completion of certain milestones in
construction.
6. Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidhyutikaran
Yojana: The Rajiv Gandhi Grameen
Vidhyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) is the major
rural electrification scheme of the Ministry
of Power, which aims at providing electricity
in all village and habitations in four years
and prodives access to erlectricity to all rural
households. This program is one of the major
components of Bharat Nirman. The
approach is to strengthen the electricity
distribution infrastructure by establishing
Rural Electricity Distribution Backbone
(REDB) with at least a 33/11 KV sub-station,
Village Electrification Infrastructure (VEI)
with at least a Distribution Transformer in
each village or hamlet, and stand-alone grids
with generation where grid supply is not
feasible.

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