The 73rd Amendment Act, 1992, made it mandatory for the state governments to establish the Panchayati Raj system in their states.
Salient Features of the 73rd Amendment Act, 1992
- The Panchayati Raj system was initially set up at Nagaur in Rajasthan in 1959. Then it was started in Andhra Pradesh.
- The 73rd Amendment Act, 1992, made it mandatory for the state governments to establish the Panchayati Raj system in their states.
- The 73rd Amendment Act provided for the three tier system of Panchayati Raj for states with a population of more than 20 lakh.
- Panchayat elections are held regularly after every five years.
- One-third of the total seats in the Panchayat should be reserved for the members of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women.
- The 73rd Amendment Act also laid down that the state government should appoint the State Finance.
- Commission to make recommendations for improving the financial powers of the Panchayats. It is important to draw a line of distinction between a local self-government and local government.
- In local government, the administration is looked after by the officials who are appointed by the state. Some of these officers are the patwari and village chowkidar.
- Local self-government consists of officials who are elected by the members of the locality.
Contribution of the Panchayati Raj
- It has brought government closer to the people.
- It ensures effective coordination between government programmes and voluntary agencies.
- The District Rural Development Agencies (DRDAs) work in close cooperation with Zilla Parishads.
- The higher bodies in the Panchayati Raj release funds for the Gram Panchayats under the Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana (JGSY).
- The Gram Panchayat has been active in implementing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005, which aims at providing 100 days of work to every rural household.
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