Lok Sabha Question No. 4978 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-04-01
Subject: Schemes Operated for Development of Panchayats
Ministry: PANCHAYATI RAJ
Asked by: Dr. M K Vishnu Prasad

## GOVERNMENTOF INDIA MINISTRY OF PANCHAYATI RAJ

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4978

ANSWERED ON: 01.04.2025

## SCHEMES OPERATED FOR DEVELOPMENT OFPANCHAYATS

## 4978: DR M. K. VISHNU PRASAD

Will the Minister of Panchayati Raj be pleased to state;

- (a) the details and number of schemes operated for development of Panchayats in the country;
- (b) the provisions made by the Government to ensure implementation of better Panchayati Raj System in the country, particularly in Tamil Nadu; and
- (c) the details of funds released to Panchayats, State and district-wise in Tamil Nadu?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PANCHAYATI RAJ

(PROF. S.P. SINGH BAGHEL)

(a) to (c) Panchayat is a State subject, and the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) supplements and complements the efforts of State Governments, including fund support under the schemes towards the effective functioning of the Panchayati Raj system in the country including in Tamil Nadu: The MoPR is implementing the following schemes:

- i. Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) with the primary objective of strengthening Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) by way of capacity building and training of the Elected Representatives (ERs) and their functionaries, including women elected representatives who constitute around 46% of the total elected representatives and providing infrastructural support like Gram Panchayat Bhawan and computerization,
- ii. Incentivization of Panchayats (IoP) , a central component of the RGSA scheme, to encourage a competitive spirit among PRIs, under which awards, including financial incentives, are given to the best-performing Panchayats in recognition of their good work in improving service delivery and public welfare,
- iii. Mission Mode Project on e-Panchayats (MMP-ePanchayat) , a central component of the RGSA scheme, under which various e-governance projects are funded to promote the digitalization of Panchayats, bringing efficiency, accountability, and transparency to the functioning of PRIs and contributing to their overall transformation.

Also, grants under the Central Finance Commissions are provided to the States including Tamil Nadu for the Rural Local Bodies (RLBs).

To ensure implementation of better Panchayati Raj System in the country including in Tamil Nadu, implementation of schemes are being closely monitored through meetings, field visits, videoconferences, dashboard data etc. to ensure transparency and accountability and thereby to improve their performance for effective implementation of the schemes and utilisation of funds. Transaction based Public Finance Management System (PFMS) has been introduced for release and tracking of grants under the scheme. The Ministry has integrated eGramSwaraj with the Government eMarketplace (GeM) to bring transparency to Panchayat procurement. Beside this, an application 'AuditOnline' has also been developed for online audit of utilized Central Finance Commission funds and strengthens financial management of Panchayats. A Training Management Portal (TMP) has been developed and operationlised to facilitate real time training monitoring. Further, applications developed by the Ministry like Meri Panchayat has endeavoured to bring transparency in Panchayat Governance by making information on planning, activities and progress of works in Panchayat accessible to public. Similarly, Panchayat Nirnay is an online application aims at bringing transparency and better management in conduct of Gram Sabhas by Panchayats.

The details of funds released to the state Government of Tamil Nadu under the (i) 15 th Central Finance Commission (ii) the Scheme of RGSA and (iii) IoP during the last three years are as under:

| (Rs. in crore)   | (Rs. in crore)           | (Rs. in crore)   | (Rs. in crore)   |
|------------------|--------------------------|------------------|------------------|
| Year             | 15 th Finance Commission | RGSA             | IoP              |
| 2021-22          | 2666.00                  | 39.89            | 1.87             |
| 2022-23          | 2761                     | 25.42            | 1.80             |
| 2023-24          | 2791                     | 0.00             | 1.00             |

The Central Finance Commission grants are not directly released to the RLBs, but to the States and the States are mandated to release the funds to all tiers of the RLBs/Panchayats. Also, under the scheme of RGSA, funds are not provided directly to the Districts or Gram Panchayats and released to the States that spends for the Panchayats for various purposes as per the scheme objectives. Under IoP, funds are directly released to the Panchayats with effect from 2021-22.

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