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The Panchayati Raj signifies the system of rural self-government in India. It was constitutionalised through the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992 and deals with the selection of the members of panchayats at the village, intermediate and district levels directly by the people.
Indian Constitution
India, a union of states, is a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic with a Parliamentary System of government. The Republic is governed in terms of the Constitution, which was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on November 26, 1949, and came into force on January 26, 1950. The Constitution that regards the parliamentary form of government is federal in form with a unitary feature. The President of India is the head of the constitutional head of the Executive Branch. At present, the Indian Constitution includes 448 Articles, 25 Parts along with 12 Schedules that provide the fundamental principles based on which India is governed by a system of the governing council.
Evolution of Panchayati Raj in India
The history of the Panchayati Raj in India has been divided into two parts Vedic era and the Epic era.
Vedic Era: As per the old Sanskrit scripture, the meaning of Panchayatan is a group of five persons. Among the five persons, one is the spiritual man. The spiritual man provides cognitive solutions to the group members.
Epic era:This era indicates two of the great epic of India. One is Ramayana and Mahabharata.
Key features of Panchayati raj
- The gram sabha is a body that is consisted of all the people of the village. The people who are enrolled in the electoral list of the village have the right to take part in any gram sabha of the village. Gram Sabha is the permanent and smallest body of the Panchayati raj system. The state legislature provides the Panchayati Raj with some of the fixed powers on the ground of law.
- The seats of Panchayati raj are reserved for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes considering the population proportion of the village.
- One of the special features of the Panchayati raj is that one-third of the total number of members is reserved for women. The reserved seats are allotted by rotation of various constituencies.
- The Panchayati raj system is also responsible for dealing with the social justice of ground-level people of the village. It is also responsible for the economic development of the village.
Different types of Panchayats
Gram Panchayat
The gram panchayat is formed by a village or group of the village. In the case of many villages, the villages are divided into smaller wards. Every ward elects one ward member to inform the problem of the ground level people. The president of the village panchayat is called Sarpanch. He is elected by the ward members. The sarpanch is elected for a term of five years.
Block Panchayat
The Panchayat Samiti plays an intermediate role in the Panchayat Raj system. But the block is not responsible for arranging elections for the Panchayat Samiti council. The Block Panchayat includes the Sarpanches and Upa Sarpanches of all the village panchayats.
District Panchayat
The district panchayat is known as the Zilla Parishad. This is also the third-tier system of the Panchayati Raj system. The District Panchayat is an elected body of the Panchayati Raj system. The District Panchayat is represented by the Chairperson of Block Samitis. The chairperson of Zilla Parishad is the political head of the District Panchayat.
The Panchayati Raj and the Rural Development
The Panchayati Raj of India is the process of decision-making of people and helps in the decentralisation of power across the rural areas in India. The chairperson of panchayats at the district (Zilla Parishad) and intermediate levels is elected indirectly by and from among the elected members thereof. All the seats in a Village Panchayat are filled by a direct election and the electorate is named Gram Sabha which is a village assembly comprising all the registered voters in the area of a panchayat. The chairperson of a panchayat at village level is elected as per the law passed by a state. Moreover, seats are reserved in the panchayat for Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes in proportion to the amount of population as mentioned in Article 243D in the Indian Constitution. The Panchayats are entrusted to implement and prepare plans for the social justice and economic development of the villages. A state authorises the Panchayats to collect and levy appropriate duties like collecting tolls, taxes etc.
Conclusion
It can be concluded that the Panchayati Raj plays a crucial role in implementing the rural development of India. It is made by a village assembly and the members of the same are elected by the people themselves. On the other hand, On the other hand, the government of India should monitor the functions of Panchayats. The political party is not effective enough in protecting the fundamental rights of the ground level citizens. The governance of India has also been encountered to show the head of the constitutional branches.
