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73rd Constitutional Amendment

Madhya Pradesh scenario


Parikshit Nema
2010BPLN012
Siddharth Singh
2010BPLN003

Background
Madhya Pradesh was the first state in the country to

implement the 73rd and 74th Amendment to the


Constitution.
23051 Panchayats in MP and 3,96,877 elected
representatives govern the Panchayats in the state.

Of these, 1,34,368 seats are reserved for

women in all three tiers.


In the third generation of elections, out of
23051 Panchayats, 8394 Panchayats are
headed by women

Preliminaries
Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Act 1962
Passed to implement decentralized institutions

based on the report of Balvantray Mehta


committee.
Tribal areas not included under its domain.
3-Tiers Panchayats envisaged Gram Panchayat
at village level, Janpad Panchayat at block level
and Zilla Panchayat at district level.

Madhya Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1990


Revitalizing panchayats and transfer power to

the lower level to ensure participation of them


It also provided for Gram Sabhas which was to
be organized at the patwari circle level.
Regular elections, involvement of political
parties and transfer of resources and
development machinery to the local bodies.

Problems and Shortcomings


This attempt to establish panchayati raj sytem

turned out to be a half hearted one and thus these


institutions remained ineffective in a large sense.
In actual implementation, state government turn
out to be not much desirous to transfer effective
powers, resources and authority to the local bodies.
Bureaucratic structures also posed a tough
resistance to devolve power to panchayats.

73rd Amendment Act


73rdand 74thamendment acts were passed by

Parliament with near unanimity on 22 and


23rdDecember 1992.
Binding on the states to pass implementing
legislation within a year of the commencement of
73rdamendment act.
It added 11thschedule in the constitution which list
subjects required to be transferred to panchayats.

Madhya Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1993


This act was passed by Madhya Pradesh government to

implement the 73rdamendment act.


Empower Panchayati Raj Institutions and to make them
more democratic by
Ensure greater participation, and endow them with powers
to enable effective local self governance
Ensure their involvement in local administration and
development activities
Independent audit organization under State Government to
audit the accounts of Panchayats

Degree of Devolution

Post 73rd CAA


Madhya Pradesh Government has taken many significant steps to

devolve functions, functionaries and finances related to various


departments to the Panchayats.
However these functions have not been transferred in their
whole but State Government has kept significant part of them
with itself and devolved only implementation, monitoring etc. to
Panchayats.
. Functionaries transferred also remained employees of State
Government and power of their transfer, posting, promotions etc.
remain solely with the State Government departments
Panchayats also lack their own financial resources.

Post 73rd CAA


Political clout of the Panchayats depends on their

relationship with upper level Governments.


Panchayats are also lacking any effective
influence over State Government.
Distribution of revenue depends on the advice of
State Finance Commission but its constitutions is
completely in the hands of State Government.

Conclusion
Panchayati Raj System as implemented in Madhya Pradesh in

post 73rd amendment act period has not fulfilled the dream of
self government units at local level.
Panchayats in Madhya Pradesh has not been provided with much
financial resources.
The taxes which have been allocated to them are not very
significant and they also lack capacity to enforce these taxes.
Panchayats rendered as an agency providing implementation
and delivery of programs decided at above and thus they remain
limited as implementation agencies of State/Central Government
rather than governments in themselves.

State Government under the leadership of Mr. Digvijay

Singh the then Chief Minister had shown an ambivalent


attitude toward Panchayats
At the one hand, he took some significant steps to
establish Panchayats and transferred many functions,
functionaries and finances and at the other hand he also
established a parallel District Government headed by a
minister of state government.
There are also many other parallel bodies like DRDA and
line departments which exists.

There still exist multiple parallel agencies at district,

block and village level working for development


activities and providing services which in turn
reduce the importance of Panchayats.
Lack of linkages between different levels of
Panchayats.
Panchayats could not be termed as very successful
in changing the paradigm of governance at the
ground level.

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