The Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj on 12 February unveiled the the Report titled “Status of Devolution to Panchayats in States – An Indicative Evidence Based Ranking.”
Key Highlights
- This report marks a milestone in India’s journey toward empowering Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) realizing the vision of ‘Local Government’ enshrined in the 73rd Constitutional Amendment.
- The report was prepared by Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) and the study covered 34 states and UTs in which 172 Panchayats of 68 districts were taken as samples.
- The states and UTs were ranked by each of the following six dimensions– framework, functions, finances, functionaries, capacity enhancement and accountability– and the first five states in the ranking were, Karnataka, followed by Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh.
- The latest report reveals that devolution has increased from 39.9% to 43.9% between the period 2013-14 to 2021-22.
- With the launch of the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) on 21.4.2018, the capacity enhancement component of the Index during this period has increased substantially from 44% to 54.6% i.e. an increase of more than 10%.
