The Grand success of Local Government Panchayati Raj in India 

A local government is an institution which is constituted to look into local problems and to provide bare amenities to the people of a village, a town or a city.

A local government has great importance of its own because of the following reasons. 

Local people know their problems well and hence it is only they who can solve them better by taking part in the local government.

 The local people can get their work done better, quicker and cheaper at the local level. 

The participation of local people in a local government generates the spirit of cooperation and hence the people readily pay their taxes. 

The local government also provides sufficient scope to the elected representatives of the local people to acquire training and experience in adminis tration. It is interesting to note that Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, our first Prime Minister, had worked as Chairman of the Allahabad Municipal Committee during the British rule and acquired much experience of administration from there. The localgovernment also lightens the burden of the union or central and state governments.

Union Government

• Based in the capital of India.

 Deals with matters of national importance.

State Government

• Each state has its own government. 

It maintains law and order, local transport, health services etc.

Local Government

• It looks after the local needs of a city, town or village.

Remember, the Panchayati Raj is also an important form of the local government in the rural areas.

The Panchayati Raj is a three-tier system. It has Panchayats at the root or village level, Samitis at the block level and the Zila Parishads at the district level. In this chapter you will read about the Village Panchayats which are the basic units of Panchayati Raj. The Block Samiti or the Prakhand Samiti is the second layer of the three tier system of Panchayati Raj. The Zila Parishad or the District Council is the top layer in the three-tier system of Panchayati Raj."

All the three institutions together look after the needs and problems of the rural areas and they are together called the Panchayati Raj. 

What is a panchayat ?

Literally speaking, a 'Panchayat' means a committee of five members. In fact, in ancient India a village used to have such a council of five elected elders who looked after the affairs of the village and the villagers. Then it was considered that God himself dwelt among the five. As such, the number Five' had an auspicious significance. The Panchayats were considered impartial in dis putes and above-board in their dealings. They also resolved disputes and dispensed justice in minor crimes. But now the Panchayats have been constituted in accordance with an Act of the Parliament passed in 1992. This Constitution Amendment Act (73) provides for establishment of Panchayats in all states except in some specified areas. The number of the members of a Panchayat may vary from state to state, with adequate representation to women and the scheduled castes. 

Organisation of a Village Panchayat Almost all big villages in India have a Gram Sabha, a Gram Panchayat and a Nyaya Panchayat. 

Let us understand the organisation and functions of each.

The Gram Sabha All adult men and women in a village who have reached the age of 18 are the members of the Gram Sabha. Thus, Gram Sabha may be called the general body of the villagers whose membership comprises all the adult members of the village. The membership can be anywhere between 100 and 1000.

The Gram Panchayat The members of a Gram Sabha elect a small committee of members from among themselves to constitute the Gram Panchayat. The number of these members may differ from state to state. The Gram Panchayat is a responsible body which looks after the various problems of the villagers and takes steps to improve the condition of the village. It is necessary that the Gram Panchayat should have a member belonging to the scheduled caste and a woman member as well. If these are not elected, the Government itself appoints two such members.

West Bengal was one of the first states to adopt Panchayati Raj successfully.

The Nyaya Panchayat Generally, there is one Nyaya Panchayat for three or four villages. Each Gram Panchayat elects some members to the Nyaya Panchayat. No person can be a member of both the Gram Panchayat and the Nyaya Panchayat at the same time.

The Nyaya Panchayats can hear only such petty cases as trespass, minor thefts and other cases of simple nature, whether civil or criminal. They can impose fines up to one hundred rupees. If a party is not satisfied with its judgement, it can go in appeal to the High Court. The Nyaya Panchayat cannot send a person to prison.

The establishment of the Nyaya Panchayats has a great significance for the economically weaker sections because they save them from undue expenditure and litigation on minor disputes. The Cases tried by these Panchayats are decided quickly and there is little chance of misleading the Panchayat by telling lies. v|3

Election of the Office Bearers of the Panchayats

Village Pradhan or Sarpanch The members of the Village Panchayat elect one of their members as Sarpanch or the Pradhan who is the Head-Panch or the President of the Panchayat. It is his duty to call the meetings of the Panchayat and to preside over these meetings.

The Panchayat Secretary The Panchayat Secretary is appointed by the District Magistrate or the Deputy Commissioner. He is a salaried officer who maintains the records and the registers of the work done by the Panchayat. He also prepares accounts, etc. He is a permanent employee. Generally, he looks after the work of two or three Panchayats.

It is now essential for all state governments to hold elections for the Panchayats.

Sources of Income

 For all these functions, the Panchayat needs money. The various sources of its income are the following:

1. Taxes on houses and shops.

 2. Taxes on fairs and markets.

3. Fees realised from registration of sale and purchase of cattle.

4. Income from the sale of public property.

5. Government grants.

Importance of the Gram Panchayats

(1) Gram Panchayats help the villagers in solving their own problems.

(2) They teach them how to elect their represen tatives who would serve them better. In this way, the Village Panchayats give the first les son in democracy.

(3) The villagers learn to cooperate with one an other while solving their own problems.

(4) These Panchayats teach the villagers self-help and not to be over-dependent on the govern ment.

(5) The Panchayats reduce the burden of the gov ernment.

(6) The Panchayats know the needs of their re spective villages better and prepare schemes which are most beneficial to them.

(7) Gram Panchayats form the basis of Panchayati Raj in our country.

The Block Samitis

The Block Samitis in some areas are also called the Khand Samitis, while in others they are also called the Prakhand Samitis. The Block Samiti is an important link between the Village Panchayat on the one side and the Zila Parishad on the other.

Composition and Election - The members of the Block Samitis are not elected directly. The Pradhans and the Panchas of the Gram Panchayats within the Block choose their representatives for the Block Samitis. Besides these elected representatives, there are other members of the Block Samitis as well. They are:

(i) Chairmen of the Town Area Committees and the Notified Area Committees within. the Block.

(ii) All the members of the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha, the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council elected from the Block concerned.

(iii) If there are no representatives of women and Scheduled Castes in the Block Samiti, then these members are appointed by the District Officer concerned. There must be two women members and four members as representatives of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in a Block Samiti,

The members of the Block Samiti elect a Block Chairman or the Block Pramukh and a Vice Chairman. The Chairman or the Block Pramukh looks after the work of the Block Samiti and if the members are not satisfied with his work they have the right to remove him by passing a vote of no confidence against him. In his absence, the Vice Chairman looks after the work of the Block Samiti.

The term of a Block Samiti is five years.

Decision-Making and Functions

 One of the main functions of a Block Samiti is \to obtain money from the Government for various programmes to develop the Block.

The Block Samitis also provide services of experts to Gram Panchayats of their area who Sive advice to the Panchayat Committees for their development. For this purpose, the Block Samitis have various experts such as agricultural experts, an engineer, an educational expert, a veterinary doctor and many other experts to give advice on various works of rural development. These experts frequently visit the villages and tell the people how to get more production by using improved seeds and manures, how to improve the breed of their cattle, how to learn scientific methods of cultivation and how to make use of the different family welfare programmes.

Sources of Income Broadly, the income of the Block Samitis comes from two sources(i) Taxes, (ii) Government assistance. The Block Samitis levy taxes on lands and houses, cattle and fairs and raise funds from the village for providing them expert services. The government assistance comes in the form of grants-in-aid from the state governments.

The Zila Parishad

The Zila Parishad or the District Council is the highest institution of the Panchayati Raj in India. Just as all the Block Samitis coordinate the development activities of all the Panchayats in their areas, similarly, the Zila Parishads coordinate the activities of the Block Samitis in the district.

The Composition and Election composition of the Zila Parishad is somewhat similar to the composition of a Block Samiti, though on a bigger scale. It is composed of the following members:

(i) The Chairmen of the Block Samitis in the district.

 (ii) Members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha representing the district. 

(iii) Members of the Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad from the district.

(iv) Representatives of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

(v) Representatives of women.

The Zila Parishad elects its Chairman and Vice-Chairman. The Chairman presides over the meetings.

The Zila Parishad and the Block Samitis appoint different committees for efficient and smooth functioning of various programmes. These sub-committees are composed from among the members themselves to look after such developmental works as education, sanitation, public health, agricultural production, finance, so cial welfare and family planning.

The Government appoints a Secretary of the Zila Parishad who is a permanent employee of the Parishad. He maintains records and accounts.

Decision-Making and Functions of the Zila Parishad 

The Zila Parishad is the apex organisation of the three-tier system of Panchayati Raj. Its main function is to help the village Panchayats and the Block Samitis and to coordinate their work. It also gives advice to the government on the work of the Panchayats and the Block Samitis. 1 2. and 52 5lt prepares plans for comprehensive

development of the whole district. It takes steps to increase agricultural production and to improve sanitation in the rural areas. It constructs good roads in villages.

Implementation of Five Year Plans and other plans for rural development are the responsibility of the Zila Parishad.

Sources of Income Its main sources of income are the following:

1. Financial grants from the Government. 

2. Rent from the property owned by the Zila Parishad. 

3. Taxes levied on properties and fairs, etc.

Significance of Panchayati Raj The Panchayati Raj has many achievements to its credit :

(1) The Panchayati Raj system has brought about political awakening in rural India. 

(2) The Panchayati Raj has brought the government close to the people.

(3) The Panchayats have succeeded in improving the condition of their respective villages by taking up welfare activities.

(4) Primary and adult schools run by the Panchayats have spread literacy and education among the rural people.

(5) The Panchayats have succeeded in drawing the attention of the government officials to their problems.

                       The State Government and Panchayati Raj

The State Government has been given the power to pass the law for constituting the different institutions of Panchayati Raj.

The State Government helps the Panchayats by giving them financial grants to carry out their plans for village improvement.

The State Government keeps a strict watch on the work of Panchayati Raj institutions and appoints a Secretary to maintain accounts and keep records of the work done by these institutions.

At the district level, the Collector or the Deputy Commissioner looks after their work and coordinates the work of Panchayati Raj and the district administration. However, at the Block level, same work is done by the Block Development Officer or B.D.O.

Concluding the post, I have myself seen how successful and transparent were the panchayats. Local people have much better information about their locality and can make better decisions, thus Panchayati Raj is an immense success for the Indian Rural areas.