Prime Minister to address the Panchayati Raj Sammelan On the Occasion of National Panchayati Raj Day On 24th April, 2016 from 3.00 PM in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand
Around 3,000 Panchayat Representatives from all states of the country will participate in this programme. The Prime Minister will address the gathering, which will be beamed live to all the Gram Sabhas all over the country. People will gather in villages across the country to hear the Prime Minister’s address.
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj has been celebrating the National Panchayati Raj Day (NPRD) on 24 April since 2010, as on this day, the 73rd Constitutional Amendment came into force in 1993. So far, NPRD was celebrated in Delhi, but this year, as part of the ‘Gramoday se Bharat Uday’ Abhiyan, the National Panchayati Raj Day is being celebrated in all Gram Panchayats in the country (except in poll bound States), as Gram Sabhas are being held between 21-24 April 2016 nationwide.
The conference of Panchayat Representatives at Jamshedpur, Jharkhand will have around 3000 Panchayati Raj representatives from across the country. The gathering will also be addressed by the Minister for Rural Development, Drinking Water & Sanitation, and Panchayati Raj and the Chief Minister of Jharkhand. All over India, people will gather in villages to listen to the Prime Minister’s address.
The Prime Minister will also give away prestigious awards on this occasion:
• Awards to States that have devolved maximum powers to Panchayats so far (Cumulative Devolution Index awards), i.e., Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Sikkim.
• Awards to States that have devolved maximum powers to Panchayats in the last three years (Incremental Devolution Index awards) to Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim and Odisha.
• Awards to States that have made greatest progress in aligning their laws to Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act 1996, which have been given for the first time, to Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
• States that have made maximum efforts to e-enable Panchayats, i.e. Karnataka, Kerala, West Bengal and Assam
In addition, a new ‘Mandate of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj’ will be released along with the ‘Devolution Index Report’ by the Prime Minister on this occasion.
The Minister for Rural Development, Drinking Water & Sanitation and Panchayati Raj Chaudhary Birender Singh will present the Panchayat Sashaktikaran Puraskar and Rashtriya Gaurav Gram Sabha Puraskar to Best Performing Panchayats and Gram Sabhas. These awards are to be given to 183 Panchayats, which includes 21 District Panchayats, 39 Block or Intermediate Panchayats, and 123 Gram Panchayats.
Celebrating the National Panchayati Raj Day, Gram Sabha meetings are being held from 21-24th April, 2016 across the country (except poll-bound States). Prabhat Pheris (or morning walks) are being organized in the villages and programmes on sanitation, cultural programmes as well as sports programmes are being observed. The Gram Sabhas are being organized to hold discussions in the areas: –
• Gram Panchayat Development Plans for local economic development,
• Optimum utilization of funds available with Panchayati Raj Institutions,
• Clean drinking water and sanitation,
• Role of women in village and rural development.
• Social inclusion
Information regarding various schemes for socio-economic development is being shared with the villagers and farmers in the Gram Sabhas for better awareness. States have taken up this campaign with enthusiasm. Around 300 Central Government officers are vising to various districts to attend these programmes of the ‘Gramoday se Bharat Uday Abhiyan’.
The Central Government, in collaboration with State Governments and Panchayats, launched the ‘Gramoday se Bharat Uday Abhiyan’. The campaign began with Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar’s 125th Birth Anniversary on 14th April 2016, and culminates with the Panchayati Raj Day on 24th April 2016. However, some States, such as Madhya Pradesh, have extended the campaign to 45 days.
In this campaign, Nation-wide efforts have been made to strengthen Panchayati Raj, and through it, increase social harmony across villages, promote rural development, and foster farmers’ welfare & livelihoods of the poor. The Prime Minister inaugurated the ‘Gramoday se Bharat Uday’ Abhiyan on 14th April 2016 at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh. From 14th April to 16th April, 2016 a ‘Social Harmony Programme’ was conducted in all Gram Panchayats. Subsequently, between 17th April to 20th April, 2016, Gram Kisan Sabhas were organized in Gram Panchayats. A National Meeting of Tribal Women Gram Panchayat Presidents from Fifth Schedule Areas of 10 States was held at Vijayawada on last Tuesday 19th April, 2016. The theme of National Meeting was: ‘Role of women Gram Panchayats in Development of Schedule V Areas’.
