"If we would see our dream of Panchayat Raj, i.e., true democracy realized, we would regard the humblest and lowest Indian as being equally the ruler of India with the tallest in the land." - - M.K. Gandhi Introduction The Panchayati Raj is a three-tiered Indian administrative organisation for the development of rural areas. It is a system of local self-government in India. This aims to establish local self-government in villages, zones and districts. The Panchayati Raj Institution (hereinafter, PRI) is a structure of local self-government in remote regions in India. The administration of local level matters by such local bodies that have been nominated by the local citizens is known as local self government. The PRI was established by the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act,1992. First it aims to promote democracy at grassroots level and to oversee the country's regional development. PRI has been in existence for 30 years in its current shape and organisation. However, there is still more work to be done in terms of decentralisation and strengthening democracy at the grassroots level. Every year on April 24, National Panchayati Raj Day is observed.Development of Panchayati Raj System in India From an analytical standpoint, the chronology of Panchayati Raj in India can be categorized into different periods as follows :-Vedic Era The phrase 'Panchayatan' is recorded in the ancient Sanskrit scriptures, and it refers to a group of five people, one of them is a spiritual person. Gradually, the idea of including a spiritual person in such organisations faded away. Sabha, Samiti, and Vidatha are all mentioned in the Rigveda as local authorities. At the municipal level, they were the democratic organs. These bodies used to give their permission to the king for particular functions and choices.Epic Era Epic Era refers to India's two main epic periods, the first one is "the Ramayana" and second is "the Mahabharata". According to the Ramayana, the governance was separated into two sections: Pur (City) and Janpad (village). There used to be a Caste Panchayat throughout the state, and one representative of the emperor's Council of Ministers was nominated by the Caste Panchayat. The Mahabharata's 'Shanti Parva,' the Manu Smriti, and Kautilya's Arthashastra all contain passages about village self-government. According to the Mahabharata, there were divisions of 10, 20, 100, and 1,000"rural groups above and beyond the village. The village's chief officer was 'Gramik,' the chief of ten villages was 'Dashap,' and the chiefs of 20, 100, and 1,000 villages were Vinshya Adhipati, Shat Gram Adhyaksha, and Shat Gram Pati, respectively. They were in charge of collecting local taxes and defending their settlements.Ancient Period Village panchayats were mentioned in Kautilya's Arthashastra. The name of the town was Pur and Nagarik was the chief. Local governments were not subject to royal meddling. The headman, aided by a council of elders, played a significant role in rural life during the Mauryan and Post-Mauryan dynasties as well. During the Gupta era, the system was maintained, however the district official was addressed to as the vishya pati as well as the village headman was addressed to as the grampati. As a result, in ancient India, there was a very well-established local governance structure based on a combination of traditions and conventions. It is important to note, however, there was no mention of women leading the panchayat or even serving as a representative of the panchayat.Medieval Period The Sultans of Delhi subdivided their empire into Vilayat provinces throughout the Sultanate period. Three main officials were responsible for the government of a village: Mukkaddam for administration, Patwari for tax collection, and Choudhrie for resolving conflicts with the support of the Panch. In terms of self-government in their jurisdiction, the villages enjoyed sufficient power. During Mughal authority in the mediaeval period, caste discrimination and a feudalistic style of governance eventually eroded rural self-government. It's worth noting that women's involvement in local village governance isn't mentioned anywhere in the mediaeval period.British Period Village panchayats lost their independence and became weak during the British government. Only in 1870 did India see the emergence of representative local institutions. By increasing local institutions' powers and duties, the renowned Mayo's resolution of 1870 accelerated the growth of local institutions. In urban communities, the idea of elected representatives was adopted in 1870. The uprising of 1857 had placed the colonial finances under a lot of strain, thus it was decided to fund local services through local taxes. As a result, Lord Mayo's resolution on decentralisation was enacted as a result of fiscal necessity. Following the example of Mayo, Lord Rippon supplied these institutions with a much-needed democratic set up in 1882. All existing boards were required to have a ⅔ majority of non-officials nominated, and the president of these entities had to be selected from among the nominated non-officials. In Bharat, this is regarded as the "Magna Carta of local democracy. The formation of the Royal Commission on Centralisation in 1907, chaired by C.E.H. Hobhouse, provides a boost to local self-government structures. The relevance of panchayats at the local level was recognised by the commission. The Montagu Chelmsford Reforms of 1919 were enacted against this backdrop, transferring municipal authority to the provinces. The reform also advocated that local bodies have complete authority over their operations and be as independent from external oversight as feasible. Due to institutional and fiscal restraints, these panchayats only included a tiny number of villages with restricted functions, and they did not develop into democratic and dynamic organizations of local self-government at the grassroots level. However, eight provincial governments had enacted Panchayat Acts by 1925, and six indigenous states had implemented panchayat laws by 1926. Local governments were given new rights, but their ability to levy taxes was reduced. The standing of local self-government organizations, on the other hand, was untouched.Post Independence Period Article 40 of the Indian Constitution mentions panchayats, and Article 246 authorises the state assembly to legislate on any topic relevant to local self-government. But, the decision-makers at the time did not universally agree on the incorporation of panchayats in the Constitution, also with biggest resistance coming from B.R.Ambedkar (Constitution's framer). The rural panchayat was finally given a position in our Constitution by Article 40 of the DPSP, following significant debate between opponents and supporters of the panchayat. Because the Directive Principles aren't legally enforceable, there isn't a consistent framework for these groups across the country. Following independence, India launched the Community Development Programmes (hereinafter,CDP) on the eve of Gandhi Jayanti, October 2, 1952, as a development project, with the Etawah Project, led by American expert Albert Mayer, as a primary influence. It covered practically all aspects of rural development that were to be carried out with the support of village panchayats and public participation. As a prelude to CDP, the National Extension Service was established in 1953. However, the initiative had little impact. The failure of the CDP was due to a number of factors, including the bureaucracy and the excessive politics, a scarcity participation, a lack of well-trained and competent workers, and a lack of enthusiasm among local organisations, particularly village panchayats, in establishing the CDP. The National Development Council established a committee led by Balwant Rai Mehta in 1957 to investigate the operation of the community development initiative. The lack of engagement in the CDP, according to the team, was the primary cause of its failure. Grama Panchayats (GPs) at the village level, Panchayat Samiti (PSs) at the block level, and Zilla Parishad (ZPs) at the district level, according to the committee. On 2nd of October 1959, Rajasthan became the first state to implement this democratic decentralisation strategy. The plan was first implemented in Andhra Pradesh on 1st November 1959. Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Odisha, Gujarat, Karnataka, Punjab and Maharashtra, among others, have passed and implemented the essential legislation. The establishment of the Ashok Mehta Committee in 1977 resulted in new thinking about the Panchayat Raj's ideals and practices. The committee advocated a two-tier Panchayat Raj institutional framework, with Zilla Parishad and Mandal Panchayat as the two levels. The district was considered as the initial stage of decentralisation below the state level in order to leverage planning knowledge and gain administrative support. Some states, such as Karnataka, have successfully implemented them based on its recommendations. The Government of India created different committees in later years in effort to resurrect and revitalise the panchayats. The Hanumantha Rao Committee (1983), G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985), L.M. Singhvi Committee (1986), Sarkaria Commission on Centre-State Relations (1988), P.K. Thungan Committee (1989), and Harlal Singh Kharra Committee are the most important among them (1990). The G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985) recommended making the 'district' the basic unit of planning and holding regular elections, while the L.M. Singhvi Committee recommended strengthening panchayats by providing more financial resources and constitutional status. The Amendment process started with Rajiv Gandhi's introduction of the 64th Amendment Bill (1989), which sought to broaden the PRIs but was not approved by the Upper House i.e. the Rajya Sabha. In 1990, the Constitution (74th Amendment Act) Law (a joint bill for the PRIs and municipalities) was submitted, but it was never debated. In September 1991, while P.V.Narasimha Rao was Prime Minister, a comprehensive modification was submitted in the shape of the Constitution 72nd Amendment Bill. Parliament ratified the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments in December 1992. Local self-governance was established in rural and urban India as a result of these modifications. The Constitution (73rd Amendment) Act of 1992 and the Constitution (74th Amendment) Act of 1992 went into effect on April 24, 1993 and June 1, 1993, respectively.Structure of Panchayati Raj
73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 The Act aspires to create a three-tier Panchayati Raj system that includes:
Salient features of the amendment are as follows:
Evaluating the Panchayati Raj System at 30 years after 73rd Amendment Issues:
Way forward and Suggestions:
People's demands for long-term decentralisation, as well as lobbying, should be centred on a decentralisation agenda. To satisfy the need for decentralisation, the infrastructure must be modified. It is critical to have clarity in the allocation of functions, as well as transparent and independent sources of funding for local governments. Law Article in India
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