Transcript Slide 1

THE STATE OF
PANCHAYATS
Prof. R.Suryanarayana Reddy,
Centre Head, CDP&A
AMR-APARD
1
Panchayats
• Panchayats have been an intimate part of the
Indian culture. During the time of the Ring-Veda
(1200 BC), evidences suggest that selfgoverning village bodies called ‘Sabhas’ existed.
With the passage of time, these bodies became
panchayats
(council
of
five
persons).
Panchayats were functional institutions of
grassroots governance in almot every village.
The Village Panchayat or elected council had
large powers, both executive and judicial.
2
Panchayats
• Panchayats or council of five members
(Pancha) were closely equated with
parameshwara (meaning God), and that
God himself spoke through the pancha – a
belief which has sustained the institution
through the ages and to an extent
continued despite all the politicking, deceit
and chicanery of life in India today.
3
Panchayats
• Land was distributed by this panchayat
which also collected taxes out of the
produce and paid the government’s share
on behalf of the village. Above a number
of these village councils there was a larger
pachayat or council to supervise and
interfere in necessary.
4
Panchayats
• Casteism and feudalistic system of
governance under Mughal rule in the
medieval period slowly eroded the self
government in villages. A new class of
feudal chiefs and revenue collectors
(Zamindars) emerged between the rule
and the people.
And, so began the
stagnation and decline of self-government
in villages.
5
Panchayats
• During the British rule, the autonomy of
panchayats gradually disappeared with the
establishment of local civil and criminal
courts, revenue and police organizations,
the increase in communications, the
growth of individualism and the operation
of the individual Ryotwari (landholderwise) system as against the Mahalwari or
village tenure system.
6
Panchayats
• Panchayat was never the priority of the British
rules. The rulers were interested in the creation
of ’controlled’ local bodies, which could help
them in their trading interests by collecting taxes
for them. When the colonial administration
came under severe financial pressure after the
1857 uprising, the remedy sought was
decentralization in terms of transferring
responsibility for road and public works to local
bodies.
7
Panchayats
• 1870 that Viceroy Lord Mayo’s Resolution
(for decentralisation of power to bring
about administrative efficiency in meeting
people’s demand and to add to the
finances of colonial regime) gave the
needed impetus to the development of
local institutions.
8
Panchayats
• The government policy on decentralisation
can, however, be attributed to Lord Ripon
who, in his famous resolution on local selfgovernment on May 18, 1882, recognised
the
twin
considerations
of
local
government: (i) administrative efficiency
and (ii) political education.
9
Panchayats
• The Ripon Resolution, which focused on
towns, provided for local bodies consisting
of a large majority of elected non-official
members and presided over by a nonofficial chairperson. Rural decentralisation
remained
a
neglected
area
of
administrative reform.
10
Panchayats
• Royal Commission on Decentralisation (1907)
under the chairmanship of C.E.H. Hob house
recognized the importance of panchayats at the
village level. The commission recommended
that ‘it is most desirable, alike in the interests of
decentralisation and in order to associate the
people with the local tasks of administration,
that an attempt should be made to constitute
and develop village panchayats for the
administration of local village affairs’.
11
Panchayats
• Montague-Chemsford reforms (1919) brought local selfgovernment as a provincial transferred subject, under
the domain of Indian ministers in the provinces. Due to
organisational and fiscal constraints, the reform was
unable to make panchayat institutions truly democratic
and vibrant. However, the most significant development
of this period was the ‘establishment of village
panchayats in a number of provinces, that were no
longer mere ad hoc judicial tribunal, but representative
institutions symbolizing the corporate character of the
village and having a wide jurisdiction in respect of civic
matters’. By 1925 eight provinces had passed panchayat
acts and by 1926, six native states had also passed
panchayat laws.
12
Panchayats
• Inauguration of provincial autonomy under
the Government of India Act, 1935,
marked the evolution of panchayats in
India. Popularly elected governments in
provinces enacted legislations to further
democratise institutions of local selfgovernment.
13
Panchayats
• In spite of various committees such as the
Royal Commission on Decentralisation
(1907), the report of Montague and
Chemsford on constitutional reform
(1919), the Government of India
Resolution (1918), etc., a hierarchical
administrative
structure
based
on
supervision and control was evolved. The
administrator bacame the focal point of
rural governance.
14
Panchayats
• The British were not concerned with
decentralised democracy but only with
fashioning an administration that met their
colonial objectives.
• 1920s to 1947 emphasising the issue of all-India
Swaraj, was busy in campaigning and organising
movements for Independence under the
leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. The task of
preparing any sort of blueprint for the local level
was neglected as a result.
15
Panchayats
• Regarding the status and role to be assigned to the
institution of rural local self-government; rather there
were divergent views on the subject. On the one end
Gandhi was in favour of Village Swaraj and
strengthening the village panchayat to the fullest extent
and on the other end, Dr.B.R.Ambedkar was opposed to
this idea. He believed that the village represented
regressive India, a source of oppression. The model
state hence had to build safeguards against such social
oppression and the only way it could be done was
through the adoption of the parliamentary model of
politics.
16
Panchayats
• One the serious drawbacks of the national leaders who drafted the
Constitution, in which Panchayati Raj Institutions were placed in the
non-justiciable part of the Constitution, the Directive Principles of
State Policy, as Article 40.
• The Article read ‘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 funtion as units of selfgovernment’. However, no worthwhile legislation was immediately
enacted either at the national or state level to implement it.
• Four decades since the adoption of the Constitution, PRI’s have
traveled from the non-justiciable part of the Constitution to one
where, through a separate amendment, a whole new status has
been added to their history.
17
Panchayats
• Before PRIs could enjoy the consensual support they enjoy today
from different political groups, they had to go through various
stages.
• The First Five Year Plan failed to bring about active participation and
involvement of the people in the Plan processes, which included
Plan formulation implementation and monitoring.
• The Second Five year Plan attempted to cover the entire countryside
with National Expensive Service Blocks Assistant Development
Officers, Village Level Workers, in addition to nominated
representatives of village panchayats of that area and some other
popular organisations like co-operative secieties. But the plan failed
to satisfactorily accomplish decentralisation.
18
THE BALWANTRAI MEHTA
COMMITTEE (1957)
• The
Committee
held
that
community
development would only be deep and enduring
when the community was involved in the
planning, decision-making and implementation
process. It suggested the following.
• An early establishment of elected local bodies and evolution
to them of necessary resources, power and authority,
• That the basic unit of democratic decentralisation was at the
block samiti level since the area of jurisdiction of the local
body should neither be too large nor too small. The block
was large enough for efficiency and economy of
administration, and small enough for sustaining a sense of
involvement in the citizens,
19
• Such body must not be constrained by too much control
by the government or government agencies,
• The body must be constituted for five years by indirect
elections from the village panchayats,
• Its functions should cover the development of agriculture
in all its aspects, the promotion of local industries and
other
• Services such as drinking water, road building, etc., and
• The higher level body, Zilla Parishad, would play an
advisory role.
20
• The PRI structure did not develop the requisite
democratic momentum and failed to the needs
of rural development.
• Various reasons for such an outcome which
include political and bureaucratic resistance at
the state level to share power and resources
with local level institutions, domination of local
elites over the major share of the benefits of
welfare schemes, lack of capability at the local
level and lack of political will.
21
K.SANTHANAM COMMITTEE (1963)
The K.Santhanan Committee was appointed to
look solely at the issue of PRI finance, in 1963.
The fiscal capacity of PRIs tends to be limited, as
rich resources of revenue are pre-empted by
higher levels of government, and issue is still
debated today. The Committee was asked to
determine issues related to sanctioning of grants
to PRIs by the state government, evolving mutual
financial relations between the three tires of PRIs,
gifts and donation, handing over revenue in full or
part to PRIs.
The Committee recommended the following:
22
• Panchayats should have special powers to levy special
tax on land revenues and home taxes, etc.,
• People should not be burdened with too many demands
(taxes)
• All grants and subventions at the state level should be
mobilised and sent in a consolidated form to various
PRIs,
• A Panchayat Raj Finance Corpration should be set up to
look into the financial resource of PRIs at all levels,
provide loans and financial asistance to these grasroots
level governments and also provide non-financial
requirements of villages.
23
ASHOK MEHTA COMMITTEE (1978)
• Janata Party into power at the Centre in 1977, a
serious view was taken of the weaknesses in the
functioning of Panchayati Raj. It was decided to
appoint a high level committee under the
chairmanship of Ashok Mehta to examine and
suggest measures to strengthen PRIs. The
Committee had to evolve an effective
decentralised system of development for PRIs.
They made the following recommendations.
24
ASHOK MEHTA COMMITTEE (1978)
• The district is a viable administrative unit for which
planning, co-ordination and resource allocation are
feasible and technical expertise available,
• PRIs as a two-tier system, with mandal Panchayat at the
base and Zilla Parishad at the top,
• The PRIs are capable of planning for themselves with
the resources available to them,
• District planning should take care of the urban-rural
continuum,
25
ASHOK MEHTA COMMITTEE (1978)
• Representation of SCs and STs, in the election to
PRIs on the basis of their population,
• Four-year term of PRIs,
• Participation of political parties in elections,
• Any financial devolution should be committed to
accepting that much of the developmental
functions at the district level would be played by
the panchayts.
26
• The states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh
and West Bengal passed new legislation
based on this report. However, the flux in
politics at the state level did not allow
these institutions to develop their own
political dynamics.
27
G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985)
• The G.V.K.Rao Committee was appointed
to once again look at various aspects of
PRIs. The Committee was of the opinion
that a total view of rural development
must be taken in which PRIs must play a
central role in handling people’s problems.
It recommended the following:
28
• PRIs have to be activated and provided
with all the required support to become
effective organisations,
• PRIs at the district level and below should
be assigned the work of planning,
implementation and monitoring of rural
development programmes, and
• The block development office should be
the spinal cord of the rural development
process.
29
L.M.Singhvi Committee (1986)
• More thinking on PRIs was initiated by the
L.M.Singhvi Committee. The Gram Sabha was
considered as the base of a decentralised
democracy, and PRIs viewed as institutions of
self-governance which would actually facilitate
the participation of the people in the process of
planning and development. It recommended:
• Local self-government should be constitutionally recognised,
protected and preserved by the inclusion of new chapter in
the Constitution
• Non-involvement of political parties in Panchayat elections.
30
• The suggestion of giving PRIs constitutional
status was opposed by the Sarkaria Commission
but the idea, however, gained momentum in the
late 1980s especially because of the
endorsement by the late Prime minister Rajiv
Gandhi, who introduced the 64th Constitutional
Amendment Bill in 1989. The 64th Amendment
Bill was prepared and introduced in the lower
house of Parliament. But it got defeated in the
Rajya Sabha as non-convincing. He lost the
general elections too. In 1989, the National
Front introduced the 74th Constitutional
Amendment Bill, which could not become an Act
because of the dissolution of the Ninth Lok
Sabha.
31
• These
various
suggestions
and
recommendations
and
means
of
strengthening PRIs were considered while
formulating
the
new
Contitutional
Amendment Act.
32
The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act
• The idea that produced the 73rd Amendment
was not a response to pressure from the
grassroots, but to an increasing recognition that
the institutional initiatives of the preceding
decade had not delivered, that the extent of
rural poverty was still much too large and thus
the existing structure of government needed to
be reformed. It is interesting to note that this
idea evolved from the Centre and the state
governments.
33
• The Constitutional (73rd Amendment) Act,
passed in 1992 by the Narasimha Rao
government, came into force on April 24,
1993.
It was meant to provie
constitutional
sanction
to
establish
‘democracy at the grassroots level as it is
at the state level or national level.
34
Its main features are as follows:
The Gram Sabha or village assembly as a deliberative
body to decentralised governance has been envisaged
as the foundation of the Panchayati Raj System.
A uniform three-tire structure of panchayats at village
(Gram Panchayat-GP), intermediate (Panchayat SamitiPS) and district (Zilla Parishad-ZP) levels.
All the seats in a panchayat at every level are to be
filled by elections from respective territorial
constituencies.
Not less than one-third of the total seats for
membership as well as office of chairpersons of each
tier have to be reserved for women.
35
Reservation for weaker castes and tribes (SCs and
STs) have to be provided at all levels in proportion to
their population in the panchayats.
To supervise, direct and control the regular and
smooth elections to panchayats, a State Election
Commission has to be constituted in every State and
UT.
The Act has ensured constitution of a State Finance
Commission in every State/UT, for every five years to
suggest measures to strengthen finances of PRIs.
To promote bottom-up-planning, the District Planning
Committee (DPC) in every district has been accorded
constitutional status.
36
An indicative list of 29 items has been
given in in Eleventh Schedule of the
Constitution. Panchayats are expected
to play an effective role in planning and
implementation of works related to these
29 items
37
Today, there are about 3 million elected
representatives at all levels of the pancyat.
These members represent more than 2.4
lakh Gram Panchayats, about 6,000
intermediate level tiers and more than 500
district panchayats (see Table 1.1). Spread
over the length and breadth of the country,
the new panchayats cover about 96 per cent
of India’s more than 5.8 lakh villages and
nearly 99.6 per cent of rural population
38
This is the largest experiment in
decentralization of governance in the history
of humanity.
39
The Constitution visualizes panchayats as
institution of self-governance.
However,
giving due consideration to the federal
structure of our polity, most of the financial
powers and authorities to be endowed on
panchayats have been left at the discretion
of concerned state legislatures.
40
Consequently,
the
powers
and
functions vested in PRIs vary from state to
state.
These
provisions
combine
representative and direct democracy into a
synergy and are expected to result in an
extension and deepening of democracy in
India. Hence, panchayats have journeyed
from an institution within the culture of
India to attain constitutional status.
41
Initially, a two-tier planning was initiated at the
National and State levels. The planners and
policy-makers did, however, realise the
limitations of this system for a country as big in
size and diversity as India. They felt that multilevel planning was meeded if the fruits of
development were to reach the grass-root
level, otherwise there was always a possibility
of losing sight of problems, requirements and
potentials of the local areas while planning
form the State headquarter.
42
• Under the Constitutional arrangements,
various subjects were divided into three
categories-Central, State and Concurrent.
43
• Rural Development is a concurrent
subject, wherein the national policies
are framed with the consensus of all
the States.
44
• The idea of decentralised planning
below the State level has featured
consistently in all the Five-Year Plans.
The First Five-Year Plan talked about
breaking the National and State plans
into local units based on district, town
and villages.
It did not, however,
elaborate the way decentralisation
would be put into operation.
45
• First experiment in this regard, the Community
Development Blocks were established so that
infrastructure was created at the block level for
integration
of
the
administrative
and
development functions. The block level staff
was entrusted with the responsibility of
initiating all round development of the villages.
However, it certainly lacked the popular
involvement, as its scope was limited. The
programme was empowered only with
economic and administrative decentralisation
and not with political decentralisation, which
was vital for its success.
46
• Second Five –Year Plan, It was clearly
stated that district would be the pivot of
the structure of democratic planning. In
emphasising planning at the district level
and below, the objective was to carry the
district and State plans as close to the
people as possible through local
community
participation
and
cooperative self-help.
47
• Balwantrai Mehata Committee constituted by
Government in 1958 on community
development
and
plan
projects,
recommended
decentralisation
of
administration and democratization of power.
Under
the
scheme
of
“democratic
decentralisation”, a democratic body in each
development block for all the development
activities at that level was suggested, i.e. A
three-tier integrated organic structure with
Gram Panchayats at the base, Zilla
Panchayat (ZP) at the apex and Panchayat
Samities or Kshetra Samities in-between.
48
• Acceptance of these recommendations
by the National Development Council
(NDC)
49
• The State legislatures passed legislations to
create these bodies in their states.
• These legislations provided for development
of districts as their main unit. Simultaneously,
these bodies were given enough powers not
only to raise resources but also to requisition
the machinery at the district and lower levels
to implement development plans to
Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs)
50
• Third Five-Year Plan and it was proposed that
the States should formulate their annual
plans, at least in the following activities on the
basis of district and block level plans.
1. Agriculture, including minor irrigation, soil
conservation, village forests, animal
husbandry, dairying, etc.,
2. Development of co-operatives;
3. Village industries;
51
4.
Elementary
education,
especially
provision of school buildings for local
communities;
5. Rural water supply, programme of
minimum
rural
amenities,
including
construction of approach roads linking each
village to the nearest road or rail head; and.
6. Works/programmes for fuller utilisation of
manpower resources in rural areas
52
• The Administrative Reform Commission in 1967
examined the question of planning at the district
level. Thereafter the Planning Commission issued
a set of detailed guidelines for preparation of
district plans. These guidelines also visualised
preparation of a perspective plan along with
medium-term and annual plans. On the basis of
Planning Commission’s guidelines, the State of
Maharashtra started preparation of district plans in
1972. It not only identified the schemes for district
planning boards known as District Development
and Planning Councils at the district level. Gujarat
initiated district planning in 1979. Karnataka was
the third state to start district level planning around
this time. All these States evolved their own
procedures of devolution of plan funds to the
districts as well as formulation of plans.
53
• The new Government at the Union Level in
1977 set-up a Working Group under the
Chairmanship of M.L.Dantwala to draw up
guidelines for the block-level planning. The
Working Group noted that the remoteness of
the planning agencies from the areas of
implementation and vastness of geographical
coverage hamper matching of sectoral
financial allocations with location-specific
needs as well as potential for regulating the
distribution of the developmental gains.
54
•
Another committee, headed by Ashok Mehta, was
appointed to inquire into the working of the panchayat
Raj Institutions and to suggest measures to
strenghten them so as to enable the decentralised
system of planning and development to be effective.
Ashok Mehta Committee felt that development work in
future needs intricate designing and greater coordination, which would be unwise to attempt at the
State level. It also suggested that district planning
unit consisting of a professionally qualified team
should be placed with the ZP.
55
• The Planning Commission again set-up
a Working Group on district planning
under the chairmanship of C.H.1984,
recommending the ‘stage approach’ to
district planning.
56
• The Seventh Plan document (1985-90)
re-affirmed its faith in the process of
decentralisation and resolved to follow
the process on the lines suggested by the
Rao Committee.
57
• In 1985, the Planning Commission
appointed a committee under the
chairmanship of G.V.K. Rao to review
existing administrative arrangements for
rural development and to suggest
appropriate structural mechanism to
activate PRI’s.
58
•
The Eighth Five-Year Plan (1992-97) was launched from 1st
April 1992 against the background of two years of poor
economic performance. It offered a package of structural
adjustments in the form of economic liberalisation,
privatisation and fiscal disciplinary reforms. The Government
recognised that under the evolved system, people have
become mere passive observers and receivers of doles.
Hence, the emphasis Institutions (PRI’s) as the focal point for
organising and implementing rural development programmes.
Tjis approach was consistent with the views of Mahatma
Gandhi and the Recommendations of Ashok Mehta
Committee on PRIs. The socio-economic activities like
education and literacy, health and family planning, land
improvement, minor irrigation, recovery and development of
waste-land and afforestation were treated as “core activities”
in which people’s participation could be maximum and more
fruitful. It would also result in lowering financial outlays on
these activities. Government envisaged a happy marriage
between integrated area development approach and
democratic decentralisation of rural development.
59
• The Ninth Plan (1997-2002) provides
that the PRIs should prepare plans for
economic development and social
justice for an integrated development of
the district.
60
• Certain broad principles are laid down for
assigning a role to each of the three-tiers; the
actual devolution could be based on the rule
that what can be done at a lower level should
be done at that level, and not at a higher
level. Initially, the Gram Sabha would list out
developmental priorities and assist in the fair
selection of beneficiaries under various
programmes and schemes. Thereafter, the
planning process would begin from below
with the preparation of village plans, which
would be incorporated into the intermediate
level Block plans and finally merged into a
District Plan.
61
• Union Government has set apart 41 per cent
of plan resources for decentralised planning,
including ‘un-tied funds’ and’incentive grants’
to match the contributions raised by PRIs.
Thereafter sectoral allocations at the State
level should be on the basis of demands
made from below by the districts and in
keeping with the national priorities. In this
way, it would be possible to bring about both a
vertical and a horizontal integration of
resources and services.
62
• The Ninth Plan aslo lays emphasis on a
comprehensive time bound training
policy for the functionaries, in order to
equip them with updated information
and modern technologies, which in turn
have to be disseminated amongst the
rural people.
63
• Hitherto, the question of decentralised
planning has been restricted to one of
planning techniques but it needs to be
extended to the whole process of sociopolitical changes.
64
• The electorate, elected representatives
and the bureaucracy, has to jointly
create an environment conducive for
these institutions to take roots.
65
• There are at least six areas where local
government empowerment is sought to be
achieved through constitutional means.
These are:
(i) typology and size,
(ii) electoral representation,
(iii) institutional existence and autonomy,
(iv) local functions,
(v) local finance, and
(vi) external accountability.
66
• While ‘social audit and transparency’ in
the functioning of PRIs is crucial for
evoking peoples’
participation, the
institutional structure should support
financial and administrative devolution
of power. While rural development
necessitates decentralisation, political
compulsions, many a times, pull
towards centralisation.
67
• Political parties in power are always
uncertain of their position. So they tend to
resist and resent any attempt at setting up of
local organisations outside their control. The
Central and Stae leaderships look with
suspicion at the emergence of any strong
decentralised institutional political leadership
and hence evolve ways and means of
controlling the power and authority of the
lower tiers.
68
• Despite the obvious struggle for power and
control. The Central Government has shown
the political will to constitutionalise the status
of PRIs in larger public interest, the
Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 has
therefore been cherished as a watershed
event for achieving rural development
through democratic decentralisation. It has
laid down certain mandatory provisions in
terms of structural organisation of PRIs while
the functional aspects are left to the option of
respective states.
69
• The catch lies in the areas where each
state has to frame its own laws to
operationalise the mandate given in
favour of strengthening the PRIs.
70
• Rural development so far has been
characterised by centralised planning
withemphasis on macro-level targets than on
ground level realities and felt needs of the
people. The bureaucratic system sought little
involvement of the community for whom
these programmes were not evaluated
against the end objectives viz., removal of
poverty or improvement of standards of living
in the rural areas.
71
• Based on the Directive Principles
enshrined in the Constitution, various
Governments made attempts towards
setting-up of multi-structured Panchayat
Raj system, but did not endow it with
requisite powers and resources.
72
• It is only now, after more than 45 years
of independence, that 73rd Amendment
of the Constitution enables Panchayats
to play a substantial role in the local
self-government.
73
• The emergence of PRIs is leading to
changes in rural poor structure as well as the
equation between the officials and nonofficials. Within the Panchayat Raj set-up
there is a grim fight, directly or indirectly,
among the political parties, to capture power,
as it facilitates their political power struggle,
at higher levels, as well as among different
tiers of PRIs for appropriating maximum
resources. PR system has to surmount many
challenges by evolving consensus in the
long-run, if it has to survive and play an
important role in ensuring growth and equity
in rural areas.
74
• With the 73rd Amendment to the Constitution
envisaging the establishment of Panchayats
as units of local government, it is mandatory
for the States to devolve adequate powers
and responsibilities upon the PIRs. The
success of this system essentially depends
upon the external as well as the internal
politico-administrative set-up.
Although
political will is said to have been
demonstrated by away of constitutional
amendment at the Centre and through the
State legislation, yet it needs to be further
reiterated in terms of devolution of funds,
functions and functionaries to the PRIs.
75
An overview of the mandatory and
discretionary provisions of the Constitution
(73rd Amendment) Act. It outlines the basic
structure of PRI bodies at various levels.
76
Institutional
Overview
77
Mandatory
Provisions
78
Constitution of Panchayats:
The Central act has prescribed a three-tier
system of panchyaths and in each state, there shall
be panchayats at the village, intermediate and
district levels.
However, panchayats at the
intermediate level may not be constituted in a state
having a population not exceeding 20 lakh.
79
Constitution of Panchayats:
All the seats in a panchayat shall be filled by
persons chosen by direct election from territorial
constituencies in the panchayat area. For this
purpose, this panchayat area shall be divided into
territorial constituencies in such a manner that the
ratio between the population of each constituency
and the number of seats allotted to it shall, so far as
it is practical, be the same. A person who has
attained the age of 21 years can contest the
election from being elected as a member of a
panchayat. The validity of any law relating to the
delimitation shall not be called in question in any
80
court.
Similarly, no election to any panchayat shall be called
in question, except by an election petition presented to
such authority and in such manner as is provided by the
legislature of that state. The superintendence, direction
and control of the preparation of electoral rolls and the
conduct of all elections to the panchayats shall be
vested in the State Election Commission, comprising the
State Election Commissioner, comprising the State
Election Commissioner appointed by the state
government.
The chairperson of a panchyat at the intermediate
and district levels shall be elected by and from amongst
the elected members thereof. Also, the chairperson and
other members of a panchayat, whether or not chosen
by direct election from territorial constituencies in the
pancyat area shall have the right to vote in the meetings
81
of the panchayats.
Reservation of the Seats:
Seats shall be reserved for both scheduled
castes and scheduled tribes in every panchayat and
the number of such seats shall bear, as nearly as
may be, the same proportion to the total number of
seats filled by direct election in that panchayat area
as the population of scheduled castes and schedules
tribes in that area bears to the total population of
that area. Also, such seats may be allotted by
rotation to different constituencies in a panchayat.
82
Not less than one-third of the total number of
seats reserved for scheduled castes or scheduled
tribes shall be reserved for women from these
castes or tribes. Similarly, in case of general seats
also, one-third of them shall be reserved for women
belonging to any class or category and such seats
may be allotted by rotation to different
constituencies in a panchayat.
83
Such numbers of offices of chairpersons at each
level shall be reserved for scheduled castes and
scheduled tribes so that their proportion to the total
number of such offices in the panchayat at each
level is the same as the population of scheduled
castes or tribes in the state bears to the state’s total
population. Also, not less than one-third of the
offices so reserved will be for women belonging to
the concerned category. Similarly, one-third of the
number of offices left for the general category at
each level shall be reserved for women belonging to
any class or category and all reservations shall be
done on a rotation basis.
84
Duration of Panchayats
A panchayat shall have a term of five years and if it
is dissolved for any reason, fresh elections shall be
held within six months from the date of such
dissolution. In case the remainder of the period is
less than six months, it shall not be necessary to
hold any election for constituting the panchayat for
such period. A panchayat constituted following the
dissolution of its predecessor before the latter’s
normal duration expires shall continue only for the
remainder of the period for which the dissolved
panchayat would have continued.
85
Constitution of the State Finance Commission
The Governor of a state shall constitute a Finance
Commission within one year and thereafter every fifth
year to review the financial position of the panchayats
and to make recommendations to the governor as to:
(a)The principles which should govern
(i)The distribution between the state and the
panchayats of the net proceeds of the taxes,
duties, tools and fees leviable by the state,
which may be divided between the under this
part and the allocation between the panchayats
at all levels of their respective shares of such
proceeds;
86
ii) The determination of the taxes, duties, tolls
and
fees, which may be assigned to or
appropriated by the panchayats;
iii) The grants-in-aid to the panchayats from the
Consolidated Fund to the states;
b) The Measures needed to improve the financial
position of the panchayats; and
c) Any other matter referred to the Finance
Commission by the Governor in the interest of
sound finance of the panchayats.
87
Through the Constitution (73rd) Amendment
Act, 1992, a sub-clause (bb) has been inserted
in Article 280 of the Constitution. According to
this sub-clause, the Central Finance
Commission, in addition to other
recommendations, shall make recommendations
to the President as to the measures needed to
augment the Consolidated Fund of a state to
supplement the resources of the panchayats in
the state on the basis of the recommendations
made by the State Finance Commission.
88
District Planning Committee:
The provision for constituting a District Planning
Committee was made under the
Constitution(74th) Amendment Act, 1992.
According to this Act, there shall be a District
Planning Committee at the district level to
consolidate the plans prepared by the
panchayats and municipalities and to prepare a
draft development plan for the district as a whole
89
Discretionary provision
• The subject of Panchayat Raj Institutions
comes under the State List in the Indian
federal system. Hence, any interference by
the Centre relating to these institutions may
be construed as an intrusion in the working
of the states. The Central Act has, therefore,
given adequate discretionary powers on
subjects like composition of the panchayats,
devolution of powers to them, their financial
matters, etc.,
90
• Under the Central Act, the following areas
have been left to the state legislatures to
make suitable provisions in their Acts on the
subject, keeping in view the over-all
objectives as laid down in the Constitutional
Amendment Act.
91
1. Nomenclature of the panchayats at different
levels.
2. Nomenclature of the chairpersons of panchayats
at various levels.
3. Size in terms of population and area for
determination of panchayats at the village and
intermediate levels.
4. Powers and functions of the Gram Sabha.
5. Composition of the panchayats at different levels:
Provided that the ratio between the popluation of
the territorial area of a panchayat at any level and
the number of seats in such panchayat to be filled
by election shall, so far as practicable, be the
same throughout the state.
92
6. To provide or not for the representation of:
(a) The chairpersons of village panchayats in the
panchayats at the intermediate level and of the
chairpersons of the intermediate level panchayats
at the district level;
(b) The members of the House of People and the
members of the state legislative assembly
representing constituencies that comprise wholly
or partly a panchayat area at levels other than the
village level;
(c) The members of the Council of States and the
members of the state legislative council where
they are registered as electors.
7. The mode of election of the chairperson of a
panchayat at the village level.
93
8.The manner in which the seats of the
members of the panchayats at different
levels shall be reserved forscheduled
castes/tribes and women. Provided that the
number of seats reserved shall be allotted by
rotation to different territorial constituencies
at each level.
9.The manner in which the offices of the
chairpersons at different levels shall be
reserved for scheduled castes/tribes and
women. Provided that the number of offices
reserved shall be allotted by rotation to
different panchayats at each level.
94
10.To provide or not for reservation of seats in
favour of backward class in any panchayat or
offices of chairpersons in the panchayats at any
level.
11.To endow the panchayats at various levels with
such powers and authority as may be necessary
to enable them to function as institutions of selfgovernment and to make provisions for the
development of powers and responsibilities
upon panchayats at the appropriate level with
respect to;
95
(a) The preparation of plans for economic
development and social justice;
(b) The implementation of schemes for
economic development and socal justice
entrusted to them, including those in
relation to the matters listed in the
Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution
(See Annexure –I).
96
12. To decide the taxes, duties, tolls and fees for
which a panchayat is authorised and also lay
down the procedure and limits for the same.
13.To decide the limits and the conditions of the
taxes, duties, tolls and fees levied and
collected by the state government but assigned
to the panchayats
14 To decide the amount of grants-in-aid provided
to the panchayats form the Consolidated Fund
of the state.
15 To authorise the panchayats at different levels
to crate a fund for crediting all money received
by or on behalf of the panchayats and also for
the withdrawal of such money.
97
16. To provide for the composition of the Finance
Commission, the qualifications which shall be
requisite for appointment as members thereof
and the manner in which they shall be selected.
The Commission shall determine their procedure
and shall have such powers in the performance
of their functions as the legislature of the state
by law confers on them. The Governor shall
cause every recommendation made by the
Commission under this article together with an
explanatory memorandum as to the action taken
thereon to be laid before the state legislature.
17. To make provisions with respect to the
maintenance of accounts by panchayats and the
auditing of such accounts.
98
18. To determine the conditions of service and
tenure of office of the State Election
Commissioner and to make provision with respect
to all matters relating to or in connection with
election to the panchayats.
This is provided that the State Election
Commissioner shall not be removed from his
office except in like manner and on the like
grounds as a judge of a High Court. The
conditions of service of the State Election
Commissioner shall ot be varied to his
disadvantage after his appointment. The
Governor, when so required by the State Election
Commission, make available such staff as may be
necessary for the discharge of the functions
99
conferred on it.
19. To make provision with respect to all matters
relating to, or in connection with, elections to
the panchayats.
20. To make provisions with respect to:
(a) The composition and functions of the
District Planning Committee;
(b) The manner in which the chairperson of
the District Planning Committee shall be filled,
provided that not less than four-fifths of the
total number of members of the committee
shall be elected by and form amongst, the
elected members of the panchayat at the
district level and of the municipalities in the
district in proportion to the ratio between the
population of rural and urban areas.
100
21. Any provision or any law relating to
panchayats in force in a state immediately
before the commencement of the Constitution
(Seventy-third) Amendment Act, 1992, which is
consistent with the provisions of this part, shall
continue to be in force until the expiration of one
year from such commencement, whichever is
earlier, provided that all the panchayats existing
immediately before such commencement shall
continue till the expiration of their, duration,
unless dissolved by a resolution passed to that
effect by the legislative assembly of that state, or
in the case of a state having a legislative council,
by each House.
101
102
103
104
Thank You
105