Overview:

• In India there are over six lakh villages, with over 750 districts and six thousand blocks that are all governed by the Panchayati Raj system.
• Panchayati Raj Institution is one of India’s oldest governing bodies.
• Panchayat is a combination of the words ‘Panch’ and ‘Ayat.’ The word panch means “five,” and the word ayat means “assembly.”
• A panchayat is a five-member assembly that works for the improvement of local communities and settles disputes at a lower level.

The theme for the 2022 National Panchayat Raj Day

There is no theme for this year’s celebrations This year’s awards were given to recognize the best work done by the panchayats in India. The awards were given in the category of:

• Nanaji Deshmukh Rashtriya Gaurav Gram Pushkar
• Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Sashaktikaran Purushkar
• Gram Panchayat Development Plan Award
• Child-friendly Panchayat Award
• e-Panchayat Puraskar

History of this day

On this day in 1992, the Indian constitution’s 73rd amendment was enacted. As a result of this amendment, the powers of the grassroots were decentralized and the Panchayati Raj was founded. Hence, this day is commemorated by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj as the National Panchayati Raj Day.

Need for Panchayati Raj Institutions

It was necessary to have governing bodies for the country’s rural areas. Hence, in 1957, a committee under the chairmanship of Balwantrai Mehta was established. This committee suggested bringing changes to the central power system and thus the Panchayati raj came into existence. In 1959, the first state to implement this system was Rajasthan, The Panchayati Raj scheme was inaugurated by the Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India.