Panchayati Raj in India @ whatisindia.com

Panchayat Raj is an ancient institution as antique as India. In fact, it has been the backbone of Indian villages since the beginning of recorded history. Gandhiji dreamt of every village a republic under the Panchayat Raj system of local self-government administered by a council or 'Panchayat' duly elected by the people of the villages in a democratic manner. The institution o Panchayati Raj is specifically designed for rural population to take care of the problems of rural areas. It provides the administrative apparatus for implementation of the programmes of rural development.

The basic objective Panchayati Raj is to evolve a system of democratic decentralization and devolution of people with a view to ensuring rapid socio-economic progress and speedier and inexpensive justice.

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The Panchayat Raj system has a three-tier structure, viz, (i) the Village Panchayatas, (ii) the Panchayat Samitis and (iii) the Zila Parishad.

(i) The Village Panchayatt or Gram Panchayat : The village panchayat or the gram Panchayat functions at the Village level.

(ii) Panchayat Samiti : The panchayat samiti is the main executive body which operates at the block level.

(iii) Zila Parishad : The Zila Parishad functions at the districts level and is responsible for making executing and coordinating the programmes of rural development for entire district.

In a populist measure that ought to have been avoided, the Haryana Chief Minister last Thursday waived the house tax in the urban areas and the “chullah” tax in the rural areas from April, 2008, provided the tax payees clear their arrears . . . . . . (Scrapping House Tax, Tribune, Editorial, The Tribune, Nov 07, 2007)

Even as two persons were killed in fresh violence in the Nandigram area on Tuesday, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee reviewed the situation at a meeting with senior State and police officials here. (Central Forces Yet To Arrive In Nandigram, Hindu, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 07, 2007)

What started off as a violent agitation against a rumour of land acquisition in Nandigram block in West Bengal’s East Midnapore (Purba Medinipur) district 10 months ago has, in fact, taken the form of a struggle for turf control between the . . . . (Fanning The Flames In Nandigram, Frontline, SUHRID SANKAR CHATTOPADHYAY, Nov 07, 2007)

Major disasters were averted on Tuesday in Upper Assam's Sibsagar district with the recovery of a powerful Improvised Explosive Device (IED) on an ONGC oil pipeline and a bottle bomb near the office of Superintendent of Police here . . . . . (Ulfa’S Attempts To Blast Ongc Pipeline Foiled, Ied, Bomb Found, New Indian Express, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 07, 2007)

The latest issue of People’s Democracy has an editorial on the Gujarat riots in the wake of Tehelka’s sting operation. (No Closure, Indian Express, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 07, 2007)

IN October, Karnataka was mired in political shenanigans and uncertainties. With the transfer of power from the Janata Dal (Secular) to its coalition partner, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), not taking off, hell broke loose as the political . . . . ("The Ideology Is Only In Speeches": , Frontline, Ravi Sharma , Nov 07, 2007)

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee today warned that concentration of authority and power only in the hands of the federal unit would be anathema to the whole system. (‘Uneven Development Can Give Rise To Terrorism’ , Tribune, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 06, 2007)

The news about food riots in West Bengal is getting alarming by the day. What began as a protest against hoarding by ration shop owners in Bankura and Birbhum districts before the festive season has spread to numerous other districts. (Food Riots In Bengal, Pioneer, Editorial, The Pioneer, Nov 06, 2007)

Rahul Gandhi may be destined to sack Central ministers and chief ministers. But at present, he is struggling to get an ordinary superintending engineer suspended for poor performance. (Rahul Gandhi Fails To Get Engineer Suspended, Times of India, SUBODH GHILDIYAL, Nov 05, 2007)

Mr Kumaraswamy claimed that there is nothing new in the memorandum of understanding (MoU) and that it has been drafted based on the discussions with BJP national leaders Rajnath Singh and Yashwant Sinha. (No Unconditional Support To Bjp: Hdk , Deccan Herald, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 03, 2007)

The Kudumbasree Mission in the district will organise a children’s parliament at Vadakara here to familiarise children with the basics of the functioning of parliamentary democracy and development issues. (Children’S Parliament At Vadakara , Hindu, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 02, 2007)

The 51st Kannada Rajyotsava was celebrated in Mysore on Thursday. A procession of cultural troupes and folk artistes was the highlight of the day. (Procession Of Cultural Troupes Marks Rajyotsava In Mysore , Hindu, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 02, 2007)

A colourful procession with the portrait of the goddess Bhuvaneshwari through the main streets of the city and presentation of the Civil Service Award marked the 51st Rajyotsava celebrations in Bellary on Thursday. (Procession, Awards Presentation Mark The Celebrations In Bellary , Hindu, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 02, 2007)

A village panchayat president is authorised to perform the functions of the ‘executive authority’ under the Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994, the Madras High Court has ruled. (Panchayat Presidents Can Issue Notice To Encroachers , Hindu, Correspondent or Reporter, Nov 02, 2007)

Right. Now hear this: to learn everything you always already knew about anything, just watch TV news. On Diwali learn to light a candle, on Christmas Eve learn to fill a stocking full of gifts by stuffing them in, on New Year’s Eve learn to keep . . . (Anchor Away, Indian Express, Shailaja Bajpai, Oct 30, 2007)

Asia’s highest polling station at Hikkem village, located on a globular plateau virtually above clouds, has a communication link to the outside world, but 25 polling stations located at much lower altitudes in this snowbound district pose a . . . (Asia’S Highest Polling Station No Problem But Lower Areas Are, Tribune, Kuldeep Chauhan, Oct 30, 2007)

Holding the Maoists responsible for the recent trouble in Nandigram, chief minister Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today said the state government had requisitioned Central forces to establish a rule of law in the trouble-torn area (The Union . . . . (No Police Action For Now: Cm, Statesman, Correspondent or Reporter, Oct 30, 2007)

South Asia is a high-volume source, transit and destination region for trafficked persons, according to Gary Lewis, India Representative of the United Nations Office of Drug and Crime (UNODC). ('Police Should Act As Protectors Of The Victims Of Trafficking' , Deccan Herald, Correspondent or Reporter, Oct 29, 2007)

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Sunday claimed that CPI(M) activists shot at her car near Sherkhan Chowk in Nandigram, West Bengal, as she was travelling in a convoy of vehicles. (Cpm Men Fired At Me, Says Mamata , Pioneer, Correspondent or Reporter, Oct 29, 2007)

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee's convoy allegedly came under fire in West Bengal's trouble-torn Nandigram area on Sunday while five people died in explosions and renewed clashes between activists of the ruling Communist Party of . . . . (Mamata Convoy Fired At In Nandigram, New Indian Express, Correspondent or Reporter, Oct 29, 2007)