• Making gram sabhas vibrant: Ministry of Panchayati raj has recommended following suggestions for reforming gram sabhas:
  • To hold gram sabha meetings at least 6-12 times in a year with a quorum of 10% , out of which at least 30% should be women.
  • Formulation of agendas for upcoming gram sabhas and releasing action taken report thereafter.
  • Ensure presence of all stakeholders and organise gram sabha at a convenient time.
  • To improve participation in gram sabhas, events like medical checkup, award for exemplary performance of citizens etc. can be used to incentivize people.     
  • Case study- In Dadera gram panchayat (Uttar Pradesh), gram sabha took the initiative to engage in planning for conserving water and developing rainwater harvesting systems. All villagers together made a plan and these measures not only resulted in water conservation but also generated employment and created a new source of revenue for Panchayat as soil excavated during pond creations was sold to local contractors. Hence, active involvement of villagers needs to be promoted.
• For financial devolution: P Venugopal committee suggested the Ministry of Panchayati raj should monitor release of funds. eGram-Swaraj portal is developed by the government for tracking funds transfer and allocation by states, which is a welcoming move.
  • The SVAMITVA scheme will streamline the determination of property tax and add more to the revenue of panchayats.
  • Example: Budhanoor, a village in Kerala which is an example of Panchayats focusing on earning through their own sources. They formed a standing committee on finance, enlisted all persons liable to pay taxes, advised defaulters, engaged volunteers for door to door collection of taxes etc. this kind of model can be replicated in other panchayats too.
• Decentralised planning: Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) has been institutionalised to decentralise planning at community level. It should be implemented efficiently as it will engage the community in participatory planning and decision making and ensure efficacy in public service delivery and inclusive development.
  • Example- Ibrahimpur village in Telangana was a village with poor infrastructure and no significant developments. With community level planning and participation of women SHGs, youth and active gram sabhas, it transformed into a model village for sustainable development with  new innovations like any time water machines, ban on single use plastic, 3KW solar energy used by houses etc. Other panchayats can also try to make effective utilisation of resources by following this model.
• Localising sustainable development goals: As sustainable development goals have objectives of eradicating poverty, hunger, gender inequalities, providing good health, education, sanitation etc. Panchayats can be at forefront to ensure the success of the country in achieving the targets and ensuring sustainable panchayats too.
• Capacity building of women: Women representatives should be trained with help of government leadership training institutions, civil society organisations etc. and be made aware of their political rights. This can help in solving the problem of proxy sarpanchs.
• Incentivizing Panchayats: Awards have always been a strong source of inspiration with appreciating panchayats doing exemplary works through awards and monetary benefits, they can be incentivized for targeted performance. Eg. ISO certification to panchayats (Kumbala, Kerala)
• Enhancing transparency and accountability: Effective implementation of various initiatives like citizen charter, online audits, social audits etc. can bring more accountability and transparency in functioning of PRIs.
• Making Panchayats resilient: During Covid-19, members of PRIs played a key role in curbing the spread of virus. Similarly, panchayats need to integrate issues like climate change, adoption of renewable sources of energy, sustainable development etc. in their planning. Eg. Odhathurai gram panchayat in Tamil Nadu earns Rs.19 lakhs annually by harnessing wind energy and selling it to the grid.

Panchayats play an important role as agents of village transformation. They are the final convergence point of all schemes of government. Hence, with structural changes in rural areas and increasing aspirations of people, Panchayats need to re-orient themselves in a desired manner to enable India to realise national as well as global targets in the true spirit of transition from “local to global”.