Panchayati Raj
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The Panchayat is a South Asian political system. ‘Panchayat’ literally means assembly (yat) of five (panch) wise and respected elders chosen and accepted by the village community. Traditionally, these assemblies settled disputes between individuals and villages. Modern Indian government has decentralised several administrative functions to the village level, empowering elected gram panchayats. Gram panchayats are not to be confused with the unelected khap panchayats (or caste panchayats) found in some parts of India.[1]
Panchayati RajThe term ‘panchayat raj’ is relatively new, having originated during the British administration. 'Raj' literally means governance or government. Mahatma Gandhi advocated Panchayati Raj, a decentralized form of Government where each village is responsible for its own affairs, as the foundation of India's political system. His term for such a vision was "Gram Swaraj" (Village Self-governance). It was adopted by state governments during the 1950s and 60s as laws were passed to establish Panchayats in various states. It also found backing in the Indian Constitution, with the 73rd amendment in 1992 to accommodate the idea. The Amendment Act of 1992 contains provision for devolution of powers and responsibilities to the panchayats to both for preparation of plans for economic development and social justice and for implementation in relation to twenty-nine subjects listed in the eleventh schedule of the constitution.[2] The panchayats receive funds from three sources – (i) local body grants, as recommended by the Central Finance Commission, (ii) funds for implementation of centrally-sponsored schemes, and (iii) funds released by the state governments on the recommendations of the State Finance Commissions.[2] In the history of Panchayati Raj in India, on April 24,1993, the Constitutional (73rd Amendment) Act, 1992 came into force to provide constitutional status to the Panchayati Raj institutions. This Act was extended to Panchayats in the tribal areas of eight States, namely Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Rajasthan from December 24, 1996. The Act aims to provide 3-tier system of Panchayati Raj for all States having population of over 2 million, to hold Panchayat elections regularly every 5 years, to provide reservation of seats for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Women, to appoint State Finance Commission to make recommendations as regards the financial powers of the Panchayats and to constitute District Planning Committee to prepare draft development plan for the district. Powers and responsibilities are delegated to Panchayats at the appropriate level :-
Village level (Panchayat)Panchayati Raj is a system of governance in which gram panchayats are the basic units of administration. It has 3 levels: village, block and district. At the village level, it is called a Panchayat. It is a local body working for the good of the village. It can have its members ranging from 7 to 31. However, in exceptions, it can have members above 31 but not below 7. The block-level institution is called the panchayat samiti. The district-level institution is called the zilla parishad. Village councilsPanchayat also refers to a council of elected members taking decisions on issues key to a village's social, cultural and economic life: thus, a panchayat is also a village's body of elected representatives. The council leader is named sarpanch in Hindi, and each member is a panch. The panchayat acts as a conduit between the local government and the people. Decisions are taken by a majority vote (Bahumat). It is said that in such a system, each villager can voice his opinion in the governance of his village.[citation needed] Decisions are taken without lengthy legal procedures and the process remains for the most part transparent.[citation needed] Panchayat is an ancient Indian word that means means Five Persons ( Headman ). Since its inception, Panchayat has come a long way, it is currently included in the constitution of the Government of India. Further reading
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