Making Gram Sabhas Vibrant

Topics Covered: GS-1: Role of women and women’s organization, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies. GS-2: Indian Constitution—historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure. GS-2: Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure, devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein. GS-2:  Separation of powers between various organs dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions. GS-2: Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies. GS-2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. GS-2: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections. GS-2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources. GS-2: Issues relating to poverty and hunger. GS-2:  Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures.

 

FACTS The Gram Panchayats are the lowest tier in the Panchayati Raj. The Gram Sabhas are the direct representative platform and have the power for direct supervision of the rural programmes and projects and to ensure accountability of GPs. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment has provisioned a strong foundation for citizens’ participation at the local level in the form of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). India is predominantly a rural nation, wherein about 65 percent of people and 70 percent of the workforce lives in rural areas that contribute to about 46 percent of the economy. The number of PRIs has increased from 2.41 lakhs in 2005 to 2.63 lakhs in 2020. A total of 21 States, namely, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand, and West Bengal, have made provisions of 50% reservation for women in PRIs in their respective State Panchayati Raj Acts. The number of PRIs has increased from 2.41 lakhs in 2005 to 2.63 lakhs in 2020. The 29 subjects included in the XI Scheduled are Agriculture, Land improvement, Minor Irrigation, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, Social forestry, Minor Forest Produce, Small Scale Industries, Khadi village and cottage industry,, Rural housing, drinking water, Fuel and fodder, Rural Electrification, Roads, Non-Conventional Energy, Vocational Education, Education, Poverty Alleviation Programme, Adult and Non-Formal Education, Libraries, Cultural activities, Markets and Fairs, Health and Sanitation, family Welfare, women and Child Development, Social welfare, Welfare of the weaker section, Public Distribution System, Maintenance of Community Assets. Gramoday Sankalp is a quarterly magazine published by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj for information delivery to the panchayats. The magazine is published in 11 regional languages, Hindi and English.

 

• Functioning of the Gram Sabhas:

• Gram Sabhas (GSs) provide citizens a direct say in the decision-making process out of respect for their villages.
• It provides a public platform for the citizens to elaborate on their problems, along with the felt needs and aspirations of the local community.
• Hurdles in the Effective Functioning of the Gram Sabhas:

• Lack of regularity and transparency.
• low participation, irregular Gram Sabha meetings, absence of a coherent Gram Sabha agenda
• The vulnerable sections of the village community hesitate to voice opinions due to inhibitions on account of their financial and social standing.
• The elected representatives of the Gram Panchayat, especially the Sarpanch, exercise significant powers which often prevents their criticism in Gram Sabhas, and reduces Gram Sabhas to mere symbolic, instead of functional and vibrant platforms of democratic local governance.

• Gram Sabha in States:

• Due to the large size of the Gram Panchayats, in some states like Karnataka, Kerala, Bihar and West Bengal etc., statutes have provided for additional structures like Ward Sabhas, meetings of which will be held prior to the Gram Sabha meetings.
• In some States/ UTS, the respective Panchayati Raj Act has also provisioned for convening of special Gram Sabhas on the request of a specified number of voters from the Gram Panchayats.
• Currently, the mandatory number of Gram Sabhas meetings in a year to be held varies from a minimum of 1 meeting (in Tripura) to maximum of 6 (in Chhattisgarh and Telangana); with most of the other states/UTs, the range for these mandatory meetings is 2 to 4.

Range	Frequency of Gram Sabhas	States
Max	6	Chhattisgarh, Telangana
Min	1	Tripura
Average	3	Remaining States

 

• Apart from the mandated Gram Sabha meetings as per the respective States’ Panchayati Raj Acts and rules, the meetings are also conducted on the days of national importance. Gram Sabhas are also organised on various campaigns like Constitution Day, International Yoga Day, etc.

• Need and Relevance:

• The Gram Sabhas are envisioned as a unique institution which would enable the citizens to highlight grassroot-level problems and build consensus in possible solutions.
• The decision of Gram Sabhas being open and transparent, in real time provides universal acceptance.
• Gram Sabhas provide the ideal platform for the government schemes to leverage the direct contact with the citizens to make them more accepting and become eager to participate.

• Ensuring Proper Functioning of the Gram Sabhas:

• The allocation of Finance Commission’s Untied Grants which can be utilised to suit the local needs amongst the various functions devolved to the panchayats, is a major step towards strengthening such autonomy.
• MoPR has been mandated to promote devolution of funds, functions, and functionaries to the PRIs across States UT’s.
• With greater devolution, the Ministry also aims to empower the Gram Sabhas by providing them with necessary resources to carry out their mandated functions properly.
• The Ministry has recognised the role of Gram Sabhas and held several discussions with State Panchayati Raj Departments to understand challenges faced by the Gram Panchayats at the grassroots level. Based on the challenges faced by the states the following recommendations have been shared with the States/UTs:

• Ensuring periodic Gram Sabha.
• Formulating and distributing Agenda/Action taken report.
• Preparing the annual calendar for Gram Sabha meetings.
• Effective Scheduling, so that selected clusters go for Gram Sabha meetings on a particular day.
• Organising Gram Sabhas at a convenient time.
• Administrative Presence.
• Augmenting people’s participation in Gram Sabha.
• Incentivising Ward Member/Elected member.

Article 243: Defines Gram Sabhas as a body consisting of persons registered in electoral rolls relating to a village comprised within the area of Panchayat at the village evel. Article 243A: A Gram Sabha may exercise such powers and perform such functions at the village level as the Legislature of a State may by law provided.

Journey of Panchayats

• The Part IV of the Constitution of India contains Directive Principles of the State Policy in which Article 40 is provisioned for organisation of village panchayats.
• The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992, promulgated 24 April 1993, has been inserted as Part IX in the Constitution, that enjoins the States to establish panchayats.

• It lays down that “the State shall take steps to organise village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government.”

• A separate legislation “Provisions for Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act” (PESA) was passed by the Parliament in 1996 to extend Part IX of the Constitution to the areas listed under the Fifth Schedule, subject to certain exceptions and modifications.

• This legislation endowed it with the management and control of natural resources and adjudication of justice in accordance with traditions and customs.
• These legislations have institutionalised the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIS) and provided for setting up of three tiers of panchayats (only two tiers in case of States or Union Territories (UTS) having population less than 20 Lakhs), which paved the way for reform in local governance in the country.
• This Amendment contains provision for devolution of powers and responsibilities to panchayats for both preparation of plans for economic development and social justice, utilising resources available with them (Article 243G) and implementation of the schemes and programmes related to twenty-nine subjects listed in the ‘Eleventh Schedule’ of the Constitution.
• The 73rd Amendment is the first one in India that mandated women’s reservation, and this made it a landmark piece of legislation.

• Ministry of Panchayati Raj:

• The Ministry of Panchayati Raj was established on 27 May 2004, with the primary objective to oversee the implementation of Part IX of the Constitution and PESA Act 1996. Panchayats’ being a State subject, their functioning is guided by respective State/UT Panchayati Raj Acts.
• The Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MOPR) works in partnership with States, principally to achieve the constitutional aspirations pertaining to the functioning of panchayats primarily through policy guidance, advocacy, technological support, capacity building and training (CB&T), persuasion, and financial support.

• Backward Region Grant Funds Scheme (BRGF):

• It was implemented from 2006-07 to 2014-15 in 272 identified backward districts to bridge the critical gaps in local infrastructure and other developmental requirements along with the capacity building of PRIs.
• Preparation of the district was an important part of BRGF.
• In the course of nine years, Rs 2738 crore were provided to the states, which was utilised on a large number of projects.

• The acceptance of the recommendation of the fourteenth Finance Commission to utilise grants worth Rs 200292.20 crores had strengthened planning at the grassroot level.
• The Fifteenth Finance Commission in its interim report for 2020-21 and final report for 2021-206 recommended an amount of Rs 60750 crore and Rs 236805 crore respectively for all the three tiers of panchayats.

• Capacity Buildings of PRIs:

• New scheme of Rashtirya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) was launched for implementation on 1 April 2018, to develop and strengthen the capacities of PRIs to become more responsive towards local developmental needs.
• Training conducted on various themes helps PRIs in preparing participatory plans that leverage technology, efficient and optimum utilisation of available resources, for realising solutions to local problems linked to SDGs.
• Panchayats are also being incentivised through awards and financial incentives in recognition of their good work for improving planning and delivery of services.

• This motivates the awardees to do innovative tasks and creates models for others to follow.
• It creates an ecosystem for overall good governance at the local level and has become a medium for creating awareness and sharing of knowledge across a large number of PRIs.

• Devolution of Funds, Function and Functionaries (3Fs):

• The progress made by the states is quite varied in terms of the devolution of subjects. Various studies have highlighted that in some states the extent of devolution is robust; in others still, it is work in progress.
• The Ministry has launched a scheme named ‘SVAMITVA’ to prepare property records of rural people of their house, ensuring the property rights of rural inhabitants is essential for.
• In view of the increasing significance of SDG goals the panchayats need to increasingly engage with various agencies working at the village level and commensurately improve their capacity.
• As per NITI Aayog, employment opportunities are shifting from the agriculture sector to construction, manufacturing and service sector. So, there is a huge potential for Agro-processing industries and MSMEs in rural areas. Panchayats need to appropriately include these in their planning and work with various stakeholders for their implementation.
• As per the report prepared by KPMG, there is huge untapped potential for the growth of financial services in rural areas. This is another frontier on which panchayats need to engage with.
• Effective implementation of various new initiatives of the Ministry under e-Panchayats needed for enhancing efficiency, transparency and accountability of the PRIs.
• Panchayats have also strengthened and are now equipped to handle disaster/natural calamities. They have also played an active role in mitigation and management of Covid-19.
• Panchayats need to be empowered to levy and collect taxes, tolls, fees, user charges etc. along with other activities to enhance their Own Source of Revenue
• Government selection of states for holistic planning using spatial technology can be scaled up in the upcoming years with resource convergence of key ministries.
• Panchayats also need to consider the climate action plan as an integral part of planning and harnessing renewable energy should be an integral part of the plan.

• Way forward:

• MoPR has travelled a long journey towards strengthening PRIs and accomplishing objectives of local self-governance.
• A lot of Panchayats are now equipped with the basic infrastructure but gaps still remain across the states. In order to fill the gaps, the saturation approach needs to be adopted.
• The E-Governance mechanism has finally reached distant PRIs, although substantial room for improvement exists.
• Progressive devolution of Function, Funds and Functionaries to PRIs through activity mapping ought to be ensured to accomplish mandated activities and to achieve the objectives of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment.

Financial Devolution:

• Article 243-I of the Indian Constitution mandates setting up of the State Finance Commission (SFC) every five years, which is required to make recommendations towards improvement of panchayat finances.
• Under the Article 208(3) (bb) of the Constitution which was inserted vide the 73rd Amendment Act, 1993, Central Finance Commission are required to make recommendation to augment the Consolidated Fund of the States.
• Recommendations for devolution to the Rural Local Bodies (RLBs) began from the Tenth Finance Commission onward (period 1995-2000). Up to the Twelfth Finance Commission (period 2005-10), nominal amounts of devolution were made to the RLBs on a lump sum basis.
• Thirteen Finance Commission: Thirteenth Finance Commission, in a radical departure from awarding a small lump sum to the PRIs, has awarded percentage of the the divisibility pool, i.e. (a) Basic Grant amounting to 1.5% of the divisibility pool, and (b) Performance Grant,  which will be payable for a period of four years starting from 2011-12 at the rate of 0.5% of the divisibility pool in the first year, and 1% of the divisible pool in the remaining three years. The Commission had also recommended an annual separate Special Area Basic Grant of 20 per capita craves out of the total Basic Grant, in the award period for the Fifth and Sixth  Schedule Areasand the Areas exempted from the purview of Part IX and IXA of the Constitution.
• Fourteenth Finance Commission: Non-part IX areas where panchayats do not exist, had not recommended the grants. The allocations by XIV FC were more than three times that of its predecessor, XIII FC. On a different stand, the XIV FC adopted a trust-based approach and recommended that the devolutions be made directly to the GPs without any share at the levels of other tiers, as they are responsible for the provision of basic services to the rural citizen.
• Fifteenth Finance Commission: Fifteenth Finance Commission (XV FC) has recommended devolution to all tiers of the Panchayati Raj including the Traditional Bodies of Non-Part IX States and Fifth and Sixth Schedule Areas. XV FC grants are provided in two parts, namely (i) Basic (Untied) Grant and (i) Tied Gram. The basic grants are untied and can be used by RLBs for location-specific felt needs, under the twenty-nine subjects enshrined in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution, except for salaries and other establishment costs.
• Recommendations for RLBs: As per Article 243-I, the SFCs are mandated to review the financial position of the panchayats and make recommendations on the principles that should govern:

• The distribution between the State and the panchayats of the net proceeds of taxes, duties, tolls, and fees leviable by the State, and their distribution between the panchayats at all levels for such proceeds
• The determination of the taxes, duties, tolls, and fees which may be assigned to, or appropriated by the panchayats;
• The grants-in-aid to panchayats from the consolidated fund of the States;
• The measures needed to improve the financial position of the panchayats;
• Any other matter in the interest of sound finance of the panchayats.

• In order to contribute towards the greater fiscal freedom of RLBs, their own source of revenues must be enhanced. The following action in this direction are contemplated:

• Updation of PRI Acts/Financial Rules and making them available
• Better assessment of properties required for levying Property Tax
• Relook on various exemptions
• Augmentation of Tax Administration Structure
• Technology-based Tax Administration

• Conclusion: The PRIs play an important role in the economic development of rural populations and adequate fiscal devolution to them towards fulfillment of their responsibility as an essential requirement. It is envisaged that increased roles being assigned to these local self-governance institutions is bound to substantially increase the quantum of panchayats finances. Such a development would go a long way towards the major roles to be played by these institutions in the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, for which our country stands fully committed.

Incentivisation of Panchayats:

• MOPR introduced Panchayat Empowerment and Accountability Incentive Scheme (PEAIS) during the year 2005-06 for States/UTs towards their performance on the extent of devolution carried out by them.

• Under PEAIS, a second component to incentivise panchayats was introduced in the year 2011-12 to put in place an accountability and performance system at the local government level.

• To provide panchayats with adequate technical and administrative support, strengthen their infrastructure and e-enablement, promote devolution, and improve their functioning, centrally sponsored scheme of Rajiv Gandhi Panchayat Sashaktikaran Abhiyan (RGPSA) scheme was approved and launched during the year 2013-14.
• Component of incentivisation of panchayats was operating under the RGPSA scheme. For a more focused approach, incentivisation of panchayats is now funded under an independent scheme- Incentivisation of Panchayats as Central Component of Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan with effect from 2016-17.
• National Panchayat Awards: The 15th Anniversary Charter on Panchayati Raj focusing on “Inclusive Growth through Inclusive Government” was adopted during the National Convention of the Chairpersons of the Zila Parishads and the Intermediate Panchayats organised by MoPR in 2008. The enactment of the Constitution (73rd Amendment ) Act, 1992 with effect from 24 April 1993 is celebrated as the National Panchayati Raj Day. On this date Panchayats are awarded under the Incentivisation of Panchayat scheme every year.
• Categories of the Award:

• Nanaji Deshmukh Rashtriya Gaurav Gram Sabha Puraskar (NDRGGSP) was instituted in the year 2010 to incentivise, appreciate and encourage the Gram Panchayats of the country, for outstanding performance, through effective Gram Sabhas, especially in respect of creating improvements in the social and economic structure of the village. The main objective of instituting this award is to strengthen the institution of Gram Sabha and to highlight it as the institution for people’s participation, collective decision and social audit.
• Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Sashaktikaran Puraskar (DDUPSP) was introduced during the year 2011, given to best performing panchayats (District, Intermediate, and Gram) in recognition of the good work done for improving the delivery of services and public goods. DDUPSP is given for general (for all PRIS) and 9 thematic categories (only for GPs). The thematic categories are as follows:

 

• Sanitation
• Civic services
• Natural Resource Management
• Serving marginalised section
• Social sector performance
• Disaster management
• CBOs/individuals taking voluntary actions to support gram panchayats
• Innovation in revenue generation
• e-Governance

   This award is given broadly in proportion to the number of panchayats/Rural Local Bodies in the State/UT. Under this Award, an incentive money of Rs 5-15 lakh per Gram Panchayat (GP) (as per population], Rs 25 lakh per Block/Intermediate Panchayat, and Rs 50 lakh per District Panchayat is given.

• Gram Panchayat Development Plan Award (GPDPA) was introduced during the year 2018, this award is conferred to best performing Gram Panchayats (GPS) across the country which has developed their GPDPs according to the State/UT specific guidelines prepared in line with the model guidelines issued by MoPR. This award is given to one GP/VC in each State/UT with award money of Rs 5 lakh each.
• Child-friendly Gram Panchayat Award (CFGPA) was introduced in the year 2019 for best performing GPs/VCs keeping in view that the basic component of social development is creating a conducive atmosphere for the healthy growth and development of children. This award is given to one GP/VC in each State/UT with award money of Rs 5 lakh each.
• e-Panchayat Puraskar is incentivise States/ UTs to adopt and implement the Panchayat Enterprise Suite (PES) Applications/State specific Applications, automate the internal workflow processes of panchayats and equivalent Rural Local Governments, enable electronic delivery of services making them more transparent, accountable and effective as organs of decentralised self-governing institutions through adoption and implementation of the e-Panchayat Applications. There is no financial incentive under this award.

• Achievement of the Scheme:

• Introduction of the thematic categories under DDUPSP to focus attention of the Panchayats on social vital issues.
• Am impetus towards greater transparency and efficiency
• Institution of Gram Panchayat Development Plan Award
• Incremental participation from Panchayats under National Panchayat Awards
• Direct transfer of award money to awardee Panchayats.

• Conclusion: The important aspect of revamping of the award system is to holistically address the roles played by the Panchayats in the attainment of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and thereby incentivise them for their targeted performance. This aspect is receiving greater demand and thus attention.

SVAMITVA Scheme:

FACTS As per the Household Assets and Indebtedness Survey 2013 conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI), about 20% of households have reported outstanding credit with non-institutional lenders, while the same number is at 10% for urban India. In India an average household has 77% of its total assets in real estate. This number is 40% for the USA, 60% for China, 50% for Thailand, and 35% for the UK. SVAMITVA Scheme uses the combination of Survey Grade Drones and CORS network (Continuously Operated Reference Stations) to accurately survey large areas in a very short span of time.

 

• Considering the lack of Record of Rights (RoR) and absence of survey of inhabited (abadi) areas in villages, there was a requirement to provide RoR in the form of Property Cards to village household owners utilising the latest drone survey technology across 6.62 lakh villages of India, leading to conceptualisation of SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages Abadi and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) Scheme.
• The Scheme aims to provide the ‘record of rights’ to village household owners possessing houses in inhabited rural areas and issuance of property cards to the property owners. This would facilitate monetisation of rural residential assets for credit and other financial services.
• Broad objectives of the SVAMITVA Scheme include:

• Leveraging property as a financial asset by the citizens of rural India.
• Creation of accurate land records for rural planning.
• Provide an integrated property validation solution for rural India.
• Serve as a means of reduction in property-related disputes.
• Facilitate with the determination of property tax.
• Creation of survey infrastructure and GIS (Geographical Information System) maps that can be used by any department or agency.

• Significance of the GIS: The high resolution and accurate image-based maps facilitate the creation of the most durable record of property ng holdings in areas with no legacy revenue records. Such accurate image-based maps provide a clear demarcation of land holdings in a very short time compared to on-ground physical measurement and mapping of the land parcels. Further, these maps are free from measurement errors to a large extent, which is not the case with traditional methodology.
• Launching the SVAMITVA Scheme:

• The pilot phase of the Scheme was rolled out on 24 April 2020 in six States namely Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
• Later on, villages of one border district of Punjab and Rajasthan and a few villages of Andhra Pradesh were also added in the pilot phase of the implementation.
• During the pilot phase, 210 CORS stations were established in the States of Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and Rajasthan.
• Based on the successful implementation and outcome of the pilot phase, the Scheme was rolled out for implementation across all States/UTs on 24 April 2021. So far, 28 States and UTs have signed MoU with Survey of India for implementation of SVAMITVA Scheme in their States/UTs. The State of Tamil Nadu is in the final stages of signing MoU for pilot villages.
• Based on Socio-Economic and Caste Census-2011 (SECC-2011) estimates of rural areas in India, the number of households expected to be benefitted from the Scheme is approx. 13.13 crores.

• Engagement with Department of Financial Services (DFS): The Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MOPR) has also engaged with the DFS in an endeavour to provide legal validation to the property cards for examination of title deeds/property cards by the bank authorities so that the same are recognised by the banks for loans and other financial benefits.
• Key Achievements:

• As of 16 September 2021, drone flying has been completed in 59,145 villages across nine States. Also, drone flying has been completed in 51 districts of the States of Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
• As of 8 September 2021, property cards have been distributed in approx. 17,000 villages across the States of Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Punjab to nearly 17 lakh property owners.
• Many property owners have also started availing of loans through property cards for constructing houses or setting up small businesses.
• There have also been instances of settlement of long pending property disputes among residents of villages during the implementation of the Scheme.

• Way Forward:

• The creation of accurate land records and GIS maps will support Panchayats in the preparation of a better-quality Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP).
• Through the accurate determination of properties and transparent land titles, Gram Panchayats will be able to streamline their property tax determination and collections in States in which they are devolved to them, thus leading to the generation of their own sources of revenue.
• CORS network provides unprecedented opportunities for innovation and all land surveys. The CORS system can overhaul the system of land measurement. The Chain, Compass, or Plane Table survey methods could now be replaced with accurate geo location-based methods, with the help of hand-held rovers and antennas.
• The Scheme has also given an impetus to the drone ecosystem in the country. Currently, there are nearly 119 drones-deployed in various States for conducting drone surveys and the number will soon increase to 300.
• Thus, SVAMITVA Scheme aims for holistic development of Gram Panchayat through the empowerment of villages and their residents which will eventually make umul India Atmanirblar.

Gram Panchayat Developmental Plans (GPDP):

• Article 243G of the Indian Constitution mandates economic development and social justice through an inclusive, community-driven, and holistic planning process of the Panchayat System, thereby evolving into institutions of local self-governance.
• As a vehicle for comprehensive and convergent development planning, the preparation of GPDP was institutionalised during the FY 2015-16. GPDP facilitates decentralised planning by the community members of the village.

 

• Broad objective of GPDP:

• To ensure integrated and inclusive development of the rural areas governed by Gram Panchayats.
• To enable and engage the community in participatory planning and decision-making processes.
• To ensure identification of locally available resources and addressing local needs of all communities through participatory planning and convergence.
• To ensure inclusion and welfare of the Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes, and other marginalised communities, Other Backward Communities, women and children, vulnerable groups, people with disabilities, etc., in the formulation and implementation of the GPDP to ensure the provision of basic social goods and a life of dignity.
• To improve efficiency and efficacy in public service delivery in local areas.
• To strengthen accountability measures at the local level.

Localising SDGs for Panchayat:

• Data Revolution: The ‘data revolution” refers to the transformative actions needed to respond to the demands of a complex development agenda using data.

• It also refers to radical improvements of how data is produced, accessed, and used. In many governments, data collection is done by an agency of the national government from a pre designed sample of the population and is then analysed using complex scientific methods to yield national aggregate estimates.

• Data Revolution at Panchayat Level: At the panchayat level, the data revolution enables the community to identify and design targets and indicators that make sense specifically in their context.

• It provides a platform to track the progress that the community makes in achieving its goals. Most importantly, it ensures that everyone gains a voice on development matters.
• Anyone can examine the panchayat’s data as well as generate citizen data that can be used to improve advocacy of their issues based on their realities.

• Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA): Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA)  is an autonomous organisation working under the Local Self Government Department, Govt of Kerala.

• KILA has developed a training toolkit for SDGs for Local Self Governments (LSGs).
• Training toolkit is a searchable database from the local level to the State level; this supports the efforts to improve the quality, reliability, availability, and comparability of data, which helps all the stakeholders to create their own data in their respective areas.
• This ultimately helps the LSGs to review. analyse, and modify their status with respect to each indicator and help to identify the gaps in each sector, and plan accordingly for the betterment and transformation of the society.

• Steps to a Successful LSG Level Data Revolution:

• Preparing ground for a  good Local Data Revolution Process by developing strong communication channels with the community, holding community meetings, developing strong relationships with various levels of government functionaries, reviewing experiences.
• Organise the Community opinion leaders and volunteers.
• Capacity Building
• Collect Data
• Receive feedback on the data collection process
• Analyse with People
• Building Linkages for development
•  

• Advantages for having Dashboards for Panchayats:

• Through this dashboard, the State, District, and local functionaries can develop targets, and track and monitor the progress on the attainment of SDGs
• Even the public can access this platform in the future, and guide self-assessment and support efforts towards an improved understanding of the collection, analysis, and sharing of data from local to State level.
• The dashboard helps to identify innovative sources of data at the local level on a variety of themes, including environment, health, education, agriculture, employment, industry, and energy, etc. Monitoring progress towards the SDGs at the local and State level.
• A data dashboard is a tool that provides a centralised, interactive means of monitoring, measuring, analysing, and extracting relevant insights from different datasets in key areas while displaying information in an interactive, intuitive, and visual way.
• Online data visualisation is a term to describe the process of extracting datasets and presenting them in a visual, graphic way while exposing historical patterns, correlations, and trends that help users generate actionable insights in an online environment.

ISO Certified Gram Panchayats:

• International Organization for Standardisation (ISO):

• It is a worldwide indication of national standards bodies (ISO member bodies). ISO 9001:2015 is one of the most popular ISO standards for developing and certifying Quality Management Systems in an organisation.
• It can be used by any organisation, large or small, regardless of its field activity.
• The certification validity is 3 years with a Surveillance Audit conducted every year to ensure the quality of the system developed.
• The ISO certification project is intended to develop a quality management system that ensures citizen satisfaction through good governance and delivery of high standard quality services.
• ISO 9001:2015 sets out the criteria for a quality management system that helps the organisation to satisfy its customers, meet regulatory requirements and achieve continual improvement. This Standard is based on seven quality management principles that an organisation can apply to ensure quality services and continuous improvement. They are as follows:

• Customer focus
• Leadership
• Engagement of People
• Process Approach
• Improvement
• Evidence-based decision making
• Relationship management

• Major Benefits/Outcomes:

• ISO certification ensures a proper front office system that includes facilities for the public, information boards, and front office counters that deliver quality service to the public.
• A proper record management system has been set up in all the LSGs. This ensures speedy delivery of services to the public and improves the efficiency of the staff.
• Though the prime focus is not to develop infrastructure, the certification ensures that the office is neat and appealing to both the public as well as the employees.
• The major focus of the ISO certification project is to ensure timely services to the public as per the citizen charter published by each LSG.
• Citizen satisfaction has increased multifold. Citizen feedback collected on a regular basis shows that citizen satisfaction is very high in Gram Panchayats in Kerala.
• The mandatory activities such as internal audit and management review have encouraged the engagement of both employees and elected representatives in continuous improvement of service.
• The initiatives like a quality circle (a friendly group of employees formed formally) have ensured the participation of employees of all levels. An efficient record management system has reduced the workload of employees which has ensured quality service delivery.
• The quality management system insists on conducting at least one employee training every month. This improved the skill set of employees as well as efficiency of front office functioning.

• Way Forward: ISO 9001 certification of Gram Panchayats was a step forward towards ensuring the world standard quality in services for the public. It does not end with just an ISO 9000 certification, rather it is the beginning of many other quality initiatives.

Digital Local Governance:

• The e-Panchayat is one of the Mission Mode Projects (MMP) under the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), to completely transform the functioning of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) making them more transparent, accountable, and effective as organs of decentralised self governing institutions.
• To strengthen e-Governance in Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIS), eGramSwaraj, a Simplified Work Based Accounting application for Panchayati Raj has been developed by amalgamating the functionalities of currently available applications in the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (MMP).
• The Ministry of Panchayati Raj is committed to using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to facilitate Panchayats in functioning effectively and empowering the panchayat functionaries to utilise technology in their day-to-day operations. MoPR has consistently brought different ICT interventions to promote convergent delivery of services for the citizens. Some of the major interventions are given below:

• eGramSwaraj (eGS, Simplified Work-Based Accounting Software):

• eGS is a Simplified Work Based Accounting Software for PRIs, providing a single platform for all planning and accounting needs including various other aspects of Panchayat functioning.
• This application is developed with an aim for tracking every expenditure incurred for each of the activities proposed under the Gram Panchayat Development Plans (GPDPs).
• eGS reduces the number of data entries that Gram Panchayat users perform and eventually eases the complexities involved in e-Governance Application.

• Geo-tagging of Assets:

• As a part of effective planning and monitoring, it is also imperative to have field-level monitoring and monitoring of the physical progress of works. Further, supplementing to strengthen the system; gco-tagging of assets is of utmost importance.
• MOPR has developed mActionSoft-a mobile-based solution for the works which have the asset as an output.
• Geo-tagging of the assets is done in at least three stages viz. (i) before the start of the work, (ii) during the work, and (iii) on completion of work.
• This would provide a repository of information on all works and assets related to natural resource management, water harvesting, drought proofing, sanitation, agriculture, check dams, and irrigation channels, etc.

• Gram Manchitra (Geo-spatial planning application):

• Gram Manchitra was launched in October 2019, as a spatial planning application for facilitating and supporting GPs to perform planning at the GP level with the use of Geo-spatial technology.
• The application is being integrated with spatial and non-spatial data from various Ministries.
• This application is also linked with Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) report, Mission Antyodaya (MA) and MA gap analysis, and Resource Envelope allocated to the Gram Panchayat.

• AuditOnline:

• Further strengthening management and transparency of Panchayats, financial AuditOnline was launched on 15 April 2020, subsequent to the recommendation of the Fifteenth Finance Commission.
• Central Finance Commissions time and again have emphasised ensuring the availability of audited accounts in the public domain.
• To begin with, it was decided to carry out the audit of 20% GPs in each State for Fourteenth Finance Commission accounts for the year 2019-20.
• However, there have been several States which have completed the audit of more than 20% of their GPS.

• Conclusion:

• In the post-Covid-19 era, the utility of having robust governance systems have been highlighted and the role of data collection and management has been widely recognised.
• The Gram Panchayats are uniquely positioned to collect reliable data at the grassroots level and thus, it is essential to leverage the underlying potential of Gram Panchayats.
• Platforms such as eGramSwaraj can strengthen the data collection and governance architecture in the rural sector, viz. eGramSwaraj application can serve as a unifying platform for sharing list of beneficiaries from other Ministry/department schemes.
• The aforesaid interventions are bound to enrich the local governance framework of the country and contribute to the technological prowess of the Panchayat functionaries.
• Consequently, the efficiency and effectiveness of Panchayati Raj Institutions are bound to improve, contributing to India’s goal of becoming Atma Nirbhar in the upcoming years.

People’s Plan:

• Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs) are prime instruments of democratic decentralisation at the grassroots level and provide an important mechanism for rural development and decentralisation of powers.
• The Ministry rolled out the first People’s Plan Campaign as ‘Sabki Yojana Sabka Vikas’ from 2 October to 31 December 2018. This year, the campaign commenced on 2 October 2021 and will last till 31 January 2022.
• The GPDP planning process targets development challenges existing across three interrelated dimensions in rural India.

• Economic Dimension: To alleviate poverty and create employment opportunities.
• Social Dimension: Social development of poor and low-income households and disadvantaged groups, eliminating inequalities in social indicators, promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment, and providing social safety nets for vulnerable groups.
• Political Dimension: Providing opportunities for the poor and low-income people in rural areas, including women and SC and ST communities to effectively and equally participate in the panchayat processes at the village level and beyond.

• To support the upliftment of the rural population of India, panchayats have been mandated to choose at least one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as their Sankalp thus taking up activities of development towards these goals.
• A mandate has been issued to include Village Poverty Reduction Plans (VPRPs) in GPDPs. VPRPs are an integral part of the village development programme wherein activities are taken up to eradicate poverty-related problems.
• All GPS are mandated to conduct two Gram Sabhas during the campaigning period. Also, GP’s are advised to effectively utilise social and print media to spread awareness and initiate mass mobilisation of citizens to attend Gram Sabhas. A minimum quorum of 10% has been advised for holding Gram Sabha meetings.
• With a data-driven approach for sustainable development, Gram Manchitra, a GIS-based planning application, has also been adopted by all Gram Panchayats. Mandatory geo-tagging of assets has been enabled in eGramSwaraj application.
• To ensure holistic planning via the inclusion of all Central and State level schemes, MoPR has mandated all Gram Panchayats to add the amount of funds received for the year. The districts have been advised to help and support their respective GPS in the same.
• The National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRDPR) has also been a collaborator with MOPR in providing capacity building and training support for PRIs. Training of Nodal Officers and Facilitators with e focus on leveraging and usage of data and convergence of schemes has been pushed throughout the training.

Community Livelihoods Support:

• The central focus of a country’s poverty reduction initiatives is livelihood development of the poor households (HHs) through adoption of sustainable practice.
• In the context of making poverty reduction measure more effective, the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), Government of India adopted ‘Livelihoods Approach’ for elimination of rural poverty and restructured Swarnajayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) into National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) in FY 2010-11.
• Community Managed Sustainable Agriculture (CMSA) was implemented in West Bengal under Anandadhara in 2015, to address the specific need of the poor farming community through improvement of farm-based livelihoods. Following are the main features of CSMA:

• SHG-based Institutions (Sangha Samabay Samitis as it is called in the State) at the Gram Panchayat level have been considered as prime stakeholders of community managed extension system in organising extension of sustainable practice, resource management, and transfer of technologies.
• Exchange of knowledge and transfer of skill for an improved system are regarded as core principles for all the activities.
• For intensive facilitation, a team of trained Community Resource Persons (CRPs) is attached with these periods.
• Building capacity of those Community Resource Persons (CRPS) who can facilitate the process with the Institutions in different agro-climatic regions.
• Focus on improvement of production system mitigation of risk and cost through adoption of environment friendly, cost reducing technology, and use of unutilised natural resources.
• Convergence of input and services from line departments and research institutions is given utmost priority.

• Methodology in Field Execution:

• CSMA is being implemented through a team of CRPs which is headed by one Sr CRP or team leaders.
• The team is handed over to a Sangha Samabay Samniti to arrange for their logistics of staying in the villages. The Samiti also identifies their area of operation and selection of HHs with whom they will work for a minimum period of 15 days in a month any interruption.
• The CRPs start acquainting themselves with the villagers, particularly with the HHs with whom they will work for a year. They get the relevant livelihood-related information from the villagers and plan for individual HH in participatory mode with both male and female partners.
• The plan includes their farm-based activities only. Accordingly, they plan for handholding training on the identified interventions viz. crop and soil nutrient management, non-pesticide management, system approach, and others.
• At the end of each round of 15 days, each CRP submits their work-done report to the Sangha Samabay. A season-based plan is prepared by the team in consultation with Sangha Samabay and credit is planned on the basis of the seasonal livelihood plan of the SHG members. The team also coordinates with the line departments for convergence of various Govt aided schemes.
• CMSA team is generally deployed for 3 consecutive years in a particular block. During this period, they work with 2500-3000 HHs.
• On completion of one year in each Sangha Samabay Samiti, the CRP team identifies Progressive Mahila Kisans (PMKS) capable to serve that area even after the tearn’s withdrawal. Thus, livelihood community cadre is developed by SHG-based institutions.

• Conclusion:

• Addressing heterogeneity and diverse needs is a challenge for any development initiative in our country.
• Community-based institutions have been given priority for the last few decades to strengthen the institutional base for better management and effective delivery of services and above all, inclusion of the community wisdom in the entire process of innovation towards change.
• CMSA model, though initially designed in top-down delivery mode, undoubtedly widens a chance of developing a community’s own strategy and internalising the necessity of linking credit requirement with training and extension.

Rural Management During Covid-19 (Case Study - Punjab):

• The Department of Rural Development and Panchayats and the Panchayati R Institutions played a key role in curbing the spread of the virus.
• Since the onset of the pandemic:

• The regular fumigation of crops was undertaken by the Gram Panchayats.
• The panchayats came up with an age-old concept of Thikri Pehra to check the influx of outsiders. The villagers entrusted themselves with the task of safeguarding the residents by sealing the entry and exit points via the Thikri Pehras. Even the women Sarpanches stood round the clock and participated in the night patrolling.
• Social distancing measures and movement restrictions were implemented to suppress the viral transmission and keep things under control.

• Employment: To cater to the homogeneous demand for work, the department played a pivotal role in employing the MGNREGA Scheme. The total number of man days generated in 2020-21 increased by 60% as compared to 2019-20.
• Ponds Cleaning Drive: The Department launched a drive for the cleaning of village ponds in the State. This drive was initiated to prepare the ponds for the monsoon season through de- watering and de- silting. This not only provided work to those who had lost jobs due to the pandemic but also rejuvenated the traditional ponds.
• Masks Making by SHGs in Rural areas: Amidst growing demand, the SHG members immensely contributed to Covid-19 prevention by manufacturing masks, aprons, and gloves at a reasonable price. During the lockdown period, mask-making allowed these SHGs to earn their livelihoods and serve the nation.
• Awareness Drive under ‘Mission Fatch’: The Department encouraged the Gram Panchayats to organise a massive door-to-door Public Outreach Campaign under Mission Fateh to sensitise the people about mandatory medical protocols to be followed, to keep the pandemic at bay. It was termed as the Mission of the people, by the people, and for the people. The panchayat’s Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAS) and Anganwad teachers, youth volunteers, and health Workers, school workers mobilised on a large scale to steer the Campaign.
• Incentivising Gram Panchayats: The Punjab Government is incentivising villages to give up vaccine hesitancy by giving a special development grant of Rs 10 lakhs to the first village of each Block, which achieves a 100% vaccination target under the Punjab government’s “Corona Mukt Pind Abhiyaan”.

1. Khap Panchayats have been in the news for functioning as extra-constitutional authorities, often delivering pronouncements amounting to human rights violations. Discuss critically the actions taken by the legislative, executive and the judiciary to set the things right in this regard.                                                                                            (GS-2: 2015)
2. The strength and sustenance of local institutions in India has shifted from their formative phase of ‘Functions, Functionaries and Funds’ to the contemporary stage of ‘Functionality’. Highlight the critical challenges faced by local institutions in terms of their functionality in recent times.                                                                                     (GS-2: 2020)
3. “The reservation of seats for women in the institutions of local self- government has had a limited impact on the patriarchal character of the Indian Political Process.” Comment.                                                                         (GS-2: 2019)
4. How is the Finance Commission of India constituted? What do you think about the terms of reference of the recently constituted Finance Commission? Discuss.                                                                                                                (GS-2: 2018)
5. Assess the importance of the Panchayat system in India as a part of local government. Apart from government grants, what sources the Panchayats can look out for financing developmental projects.                                           (GS-2: 2018)
6. “The local self-government system in India has not proved to be an effective instrument of governance”. Critically examine the statement and give your views to improve the situation.                                                               (GS-2: 2017)
7. In absence of a well-educated and organized local level government system, `Panchayats’ and ‘Samitis’ have remained mainly political institutions and not effective instruments of governance. Critically discuss.                  (GS-2: 2015)
8. Discuss the recommendations of the 13th Finance Commission which have been a departure from the previous commissions for strengthening the local government finances.                                                                           (GS-2: 2013)

1. By facilitating participatory democracy, the Gram Sabhas will not only contribute to the socio-economic development of the villages, but also create collective transformational change in the rural areas of the country. Comment.
2. Despite 50% reservation for women in PRIs in the State Panchayati Raj Acts, the women representatives are still not up to the mark. Critically Analyse.
3. In the past four decades, globally, there has been an increasing trend towards greater devolution of political, administrative and fiscal authority to the grassroot or lower level of the government. Analyse.
4. “Awards have always been a strong source of inspiration.” What are the steps taken by the  MoPR towards this endeavour and to motivate States for greater devolution?
5. Land is an essential resource for most of the economic activities aimed at the creation of economic growth in the world. How is the SVAMITVA Scheme helpful in this regard?
6. What are the broad objectives of the Gram Panchayat Development Programme? How has the GPDP impacted the livelihood  opportunities of the wage seekers?
7. What are the tools and policy guidance required for the localising of the SDGs?
8. The ISO certification project is intended to develop a quality management system that ensures citizen satisfaction through good governance. How has the ISO certification helped Local self Governments to ensure quality services and continuous improvement?
9. How does the Government of India upscaled the national effort towards the adoption of technologies in the government functioning?
10. Panchayats are the institutions responsible for the economic development and social justice in rural areas and play an important role as agents of village transformation. Explain.

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