PANCHAYAT RAJ

PANCHAYAT RAJ

In democracy it is about giving power to the people and that’s what panchayat raj is about. The Central Government gives local political bodies autonomy. The Government recognized a third tier political after the Central and State Level it recognized the village. It was adopted by the government in 190s and 60s and it also has a Constitutional provision in the 73^rd Amendment in 1992. The point of Panchyat Raj is decentralization.

Decentralization has been able to create more accountability:

--- Active participation (voting, attending meeting, running for office) in governance by all villager.

--- Fiscal (financial) and political authorities from higher authorities of government.

--- The existence of competitive political parties whose legitimacy depends on the support of the majority of the village and that include the STs, SCs and weaker sections.

Dr. Ambedakar, Gandhiji and Nehru all had different views on establishment of Panchayat Raj.

n Dr. Ambedakar: His main aim was to abolish the untouchables system. He belived that it existed at all levels and giving power the people at lower levels were not good. He also did not completely support centralization. He believed in modernity and he look towards urban areas.

n Gandhi: wholly supported the idea of panchayat raj, of giving the people the right to geverven themselves.

n Nehru: He was against this idea. He felt that people of the villages were not equipped with the knowledge to govern themselves.

PANCHAYAT RAJ FOLLOWS A THREE TIER SYSTEM

Under the 73^rd Amendment there are three level of the Panchayat Raj

n Gram Sabha at the village level which is headed by a council leader called a Sarpanch

n Panchayat Samiti consists of all the Sarphachs in a Taluka from all the Gram Sabhas. It is the link between the Gream Panchayat and the district administration.

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FOUR STAGES

Panchayat raj has an evolution of four stages.

n Feudal/Traditional: Panchaytat with a single head

n Managerial Paternal: Here a group of people benefit controlling the Panchayat. For example if a sugar factory owner gets elected to the village all the sugar farmer become a patron of the person. This types are found in Maharashtra and Delhi.

n Fragmented : Here the groups are fragmented. Panchayat do not patronize a group but the village as a whole. Found in West Bengal.

n Democracy: The last and final stage. The ultimate stage. No more inequalities.

CRITCISM AGAINST PANCHAYAT RAJ

n There is a threat that the village will be held by a few who do not care about the welfare of the village and patronize only a particular section of society.

n There will be a filter down of political parties resulting in villagers losing power and the panchayat becomes all about politics and which party is winning instead of focusing on village issues.

n Villagers are uneducated and are not able to take proper decisions.

n Villager will support a lot of wrong decisions if given a free hand. This can be seen in Khap Panchayats in Haryana.