The Panchayati Raj Day, recognized annually by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj on 24th April, commemorates the 73rd Amendment Act, of 1992 of the Constitution coming into effect in the year 1993.
This day celebrates the national local self-governance and democratic decentralization. The Ministry of Panchayati Raj, the nodal ministry, works on the mission of empowerment, enablement, and accountability of Panchayati Raj Institutions to ensure inclusive development with social justice and efficient delivery of services. Strengthening local self-government would strengthen the commitment of rural India towards self-reliance promoting social, economic, and cultural change and transforming the lives of our rural population. This year, 2022, the National Panchayati Raj Day is being celebrated along with the year-long celebration of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. On the occasion of the same, the iconic week of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj has been earmarked from 11th April 2022 to 17th April 2022.
To celebrate this monumental occasion in the right spirit and in line with the AKAM 2.0 directives of adopting a “whole-of-society” and “whole-of-government” approach as well as enhancing the outreach of AKAM 2.0 to touch the lives of every Indian, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj has conceptualized a series of Thematic Conferences for the National Panchayat Awards Week on the theme “Panchayaton ke Sankalpon ki Siddhi ka Utsav” (पंचायतों के संकल्पों की सिद्धि का उत्सव) where the representatives of high performing Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) will not only receive their coveted Awards but will also deliberate and discuss their achievements in the presence of other stakeholders that can set examples for others to follow.
National Panchayat Awards:
Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR), Government of India has been incentivizing the best performing Panchayats recommended by the State Governments/UT Administrations since 2011-12. During the National Panchayat Raj Day event, the following awards are being given to the best performing Panchayats.
Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Sashaktikaran Puraskar (DDUPSP) - is given to the best performing Panchayats (District, Intermediate, and Gram Panchayat) across the States/UTs in recognition of the good work that is done by PRIs at each level for improving the delivery of services and public goods.
Nine thematic categories for GPs are Sanitation, Civic Services (Drinking Water, Street Light, infrastructure), Natural Resource Management, Marginalized section (Women, SC/ST, Disabled, Senior Citizens), Social Sector performance, Disaster Management, Community Based Organizations/Individuals taking voluntary actions to support GPs, Innovation in Revenue Generation and e-Governance.
Nanaji Deshmukh Rashtriya Gaurav Gram Sabha Puraskar (NDRGGSP) is given to Gram Panchayats/Village Councils for their outstanding contribution to the socio-economic development by involving Gram Sabhas.
Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) Award: is given to Gram Panchayat/ Village Council which has developed its GPDP according to the State/UT specific guidelines prepared in line with the model guidelines issued by MoPR.
Child-friendly Gram Panchayat Award is given to best performing Gram Panchayat/Village Council for adopting child-friendly practices.
Revamped NPA 2023
National Panchayat Award themes
Based on the "Localization of Sustainable Development Goals", the following nine themes are being followed.
1. Poverty-free and enhanced livelihoods
panchayat
2. Healthy Panchayat
3. Child-friendly Panchayat
4. Water sufficient Panchayat
5. Clean and Green Panchayat
6. Self-sufficient infrastructure in Panchayat
7. Socially secured Panchayat
8. Panchayat with good governance
9. Women-friendly Panchayat (earlier termed
Engendered development in Panchayat
Categories of Awards
Under the revamped system, the Awards will be given to Gram, Block, and District Panchayats in two categories namely,
A. Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar (for individual theme-wise performance) and
B. Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar (for aggregate performance under all the themes).
Apart from this, some special categories of awards will be given to Gram Panchayats (GPs) namely,
A. Gram Urja Swaraj Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar for adoption and usage of renewable sources of energy;
B. Carbon Neutral Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar for exemplary work towards achieving Net-Zero carbon emissions;
C. Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar for GPs who qualify and get shortlisted for National Panchayat Awards during the subsequent years also;
D. Panchayat Kshamta Nirmaan Sarvottam Sansthan Puraskar for Institutions which have provided institutional support to GPs in achieving SDGs and
E. Best Participating State/UT/District/Block Panchayat.
Towards the endeavor of a successful implementation of the revamped National Panchayat Awards, MoPR is collaborating with nodal Central Ministries/Departments namely, Rural Development, Health & Family Welfare, Women & Child Development, Drinking Water & Sanitation, Social Justice & Empowerment and Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation. These nodal Ministries would be leading the Thematic Selection Committees for the selection of National Level Awards on the concerned themes and the other line Ministries/Departments would be the members of these Committees.
Important Facts:
1. NPR 2021 had participation from around
74,000 Panchayats.
2. This year’s engagement on National Panc-
Hayati Raj Day will be 28% more than previous
years.
3. As of now, the nation’s three-tiered government
the structure comprises over 2.6 lakh Panchayats
(village, block, and zila) and a total of 2.6 lakh
Block Samitis.
4. The Panchayat administration, which consists
of three levels, aims to help people at the
grassroots level improve socially and
economically.
5. In 2010, Dr. Manmohan Singh, the then-
Prime Minister, announced the inaugural
National Panchayati Raj Day.
6. Panchayati Raj was made official with the
implementation of the 73rd Constitutional
Amendment in 1993.
Panchayats Responsibilities:
Legislators in legislative bodies have the ability to provide Panchayats the power and responsibilities they need to operate as self-governing entities in their jurisdictions. They might well be tasked with formulating and implementing strategies for economic growth and social equity.
Tolls, levies, or other charges could be levied by a state or local government on a Panchayat if the state has the authority to do so. The Combined Funds of the State may provide grants-in-aid to the Panchayats for local development.
The Final thoughts are that starting the Panchayati Raj administration in the nation is a good move for the distribution of control in the hands of a large number of citizens and communities.