Empowerment of Panchayats

Published on September 5, 2010 by INVC   ·   1 Comment  Print This Post

INVC,,

Delhi,,

The Ministry of Panchayati Raj  has  provided token incentives amounting to Rs. 30 crore to 17 States  under the   The Panchayat Empowerment & Accountability Incentive Scheme (PEAIS) during the last three Financial years. These States are: Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh , Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Orissa, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, U.P, West Bengal and Maharashtra.  The aim of this scheme is to encourage States to empower Panchayats and put in place systems for bringing about accountability of the Panchayats.  Performance of States in these respect is measured through a Devolution Index (DI) prepared through an independent agency each year.  The Ministry has intended to provide the   Incentive amounts for the current year before the end of this financial year.

Despite the Panchayati Raj being a State subject, State Governments need to provide the required manpower and infrastructure, including buildings to the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). In this regard the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) has provided financial support to the States under the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Yojana (RGSY) for taking up construction and upgradation of the Panchayat infrastructure / buildings, which is as under:

(Amount in Rs. crore)

S.No.	Year of sanction	State	Infrastructure    sanctioned	No. of Units	Funds released
1	2006-07	Bihar	Gram Panchayat Ghars	95	2.38
2		Gujarat	Gram Panchayat Ghars	240	3.00
3		Himachal Pradesh	Gram Panchayat Ghars	120	2.00
4		Rajasthan	Gram Panchayat Ghars	180	3.00
5		West Bengal	Gram Panchayat Ghars	5	0.13
	2006-07 Total			640	10.51
6	2007-08	Assam	Gram Panchayat Ghars	770	7.23
7		Himachal Pradesh	Gram Panchayat Ghars	120	2.00
8		Orissa	Gram Panchayat Ghars	350	4.92
9		Manipur	Gram Panchayat Ghars	82	1.14
	2007-08 total			1322	15.29
10	2008-09	Himachal Pradesh	GP Resource Centre	150	3.83
	2008-09 Total			150	3.83
11	2009-10	Himachal Pradesh	GP Resource Centre	150	3.83
12		Manipur	Gram Panchayat Ghars	82	0.95
13		Rajasthan	Gram Panchayat Ghars	180	3.00
14		Karnataka	Gram Panchayat Ghars	40	1.00
	2009-10 Total			452	8.78
15	2010-11	Karnataka	Gram Panchayat Ghars	110	2.75
	2010-11 Total			110	2.75
	Grand total			2674	41.16

In addition to RGSY, MoPR and the Department of Rural Development also provide funds to the States under the Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) Programme and the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) respectively to undertake works based on felt local needs including Panchayat Ghars.  Construction of Panchayat Ghars have been taken up under these Schemes by many States.

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Tags:  Empowerment of Panchayats, Rural Development, Rural India