"When Panchayat Raj is established, public opinion will do what violence can never do"
- Mahatma Gandhiji
About the Day
There are fleeting glimpses of Village Republics in the Indian History - Villages were almost always touted to be self sufficient, the Lichivans of Vaishali practised a form of primitive Republic and the Cholas possessed a very good Local Self Government. India attained Independence in 1947 with a heavy Population tilt towards Rural areas. Article 40 of the Indian Constitution, envisaged as a Directive Principle, spoke of the necessity of Panchayati Raj. However, by a rather strange tide of events, it took almost half a century to create a Constitutional backing to the Local Self Governing Institutions vide 73rd and 74th Constitutional amendment acts.
The 73rd Constitutional Amendment act of 1992, with effect from 24th April 1993, provided constitutional status to Panchayat Raj Institutions. To commemorate this epoch marking event, since 2010, April 24th is celebrated as National Panchayat Raj Day (NPRD) in India. The necessity for local self governance, especially that of Panchayat Raj can be understood from the simple fact that, as of 2018, 65.97% of India's population resides in Rural areas - around 6,49,481 Villages out of which around 2,50,000 have Village Panchayats.
The Case of Andhra
Post bifurcation (2nd of June, 2014), a greater share of population of the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh is predominantly rural. There was a necessity to strengthen the vitality of local self governing institutions especially Panchayat Raj Institutions and to instill a new sense of accountability and transparency. Thus, the concept of village secretariats was born - Every village secretariat as a unit with domain experts at ground level (viz Engineering Assistant, Surveyor Assistant), co-ordinated by a Panchayat Secretary, and matched with a comprehensive system of Village volunteers who act as bridge between the public and officials. In difficult times, like that of Corona outbreak, the system seems to garner wide attention and appreciation. Would this system stand the test of time? Well, that is the question, but one should be always open to constructive criticism.
Happy National Panchayat Raj Day!
Maheeth Veluvali,
24th of April, 2020 - National Panchayat Raj Day,.
Palakollu
- Mahatma Gandhiji
About the Day
There are fleeting glimpses of Village Republics in the Indian History - Villages were almost always touted to be self sufficient, the Lichivans of Vaishali practised a form of primitive Republic and the Cholas possessed a very good Local Self Government. India attained Independence in 1947 with a heavy Population tilt towards Rural areas. Article 40 of the Indian Constitution, envisaged as a Directive Principle, spoke of the necessity of Panchayati Raj. However, by a rather strange tide of events, it took almost half a century to create a Constitutional backing to the Local Self Governing Institutions vide 73rd and 74th Constitutional amendment acts.
The 73rd Constitutional Amendment act of 1992, with effect from 24th April 1993, provided constitutional status to Panchayat Raj Institutions. To commemorate this epoch marking event, since 2010, April 24th is celebrated as National Panchayat Raj Day (NPRD) in India. The necessity for local self governance, especially that of Panchayat Raj can be understood from the simple fact that, as of 2018, 65.97% of India's population resides in Rural areas - around 6,49,481 Villages out of which around 2,50,000 have Village Panchayats.
The Case of Andhra
Post bifurcation (2nd of June, 2014), a greater share of population of the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh is predominantly rural. There was a necessity to strengthen the vitality of local self governing institutions especially Panchayat Raj Institutions and to instill a new sense of accountability and transparency. Thus, the concept of village secretariats was born - Every village secretariat as a unit with domain experts at ground level (viz Engineering Assistant, Surveyor Assistant), co-ordinated by a Panchayat Secretary, and matched with a comprehensive system of Village volunteers who act as bridge between the public and officials. In difficult times, like that of Corona outbreak, the system seems to garner wide attention and appreciation. Would this system stand the test of time? Well, that is the question, but one should be always open to constructive criticism.
Happy National Panchayat Raj Day!
Maheeth Veluvali,
24th of April, 2020 - National Panchayat Raj Day,.
Palakollu
wow good information
ReplyDeleteThanks Mom!
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