National Panchayati Raj Day 2020: Date, History and Significance of The Day to Celebrate Decentralisation of Power

The National Panchayati Raj Day is celebrated every year in India on April 24. The first National Panchayati Raj Day was declared on April 24, 2010, by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The day of decentralisation of power is celebrated by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj. Panchayati Raj system was first implemented in Rajasthan. UP Panchayati Raj Department Contributes Rs 53.2 Cr to State COVID Care Fund.

India is a vast country. Decentralisation of power in the hands of common man is necessary in the country like India, where the person sitting at the highest post in the state cannot get the actual idea of the problems faced by the people in a remote village.  For decentralising the power, in 1957, a committee was constituted under the chairmanship of Balwantrai Mehta. After the committee recommendation, the concept of Panchayati Raj was was constituted in the country.

The committee recommended a three-tier system of Panchayati Raj - Gram Panchayat at village level, Panchayat Samiti at Block level and Zila Parishad at District level. The Panchayati Raj system was inaugurated by the then Prime Minister of India Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on October 2, 1959 in Nagaur district of Rajasthan. PM to Interact with Village Panchayats Via Video Link on Friday.

The Panchayati Raj day is celebrated in India on April 24 as  the 73rd Constitution Amendment Act, 1992 came into force on this day in 1993. a separate Ministry of Panchayati Raj was constituted on May 27, 2004 by the first UPA government under the leader of the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The National Panchayati Raj day was first  observed in the country on April 24, 2010.

Every Year on this day, the Panchayati Raj Ministry gives awards  to the best performing Panchayats. There are 2.54 lakh Panchayats in our country. Out of the total,  2.47 lakh are gram panchayats and 6283 are block Panchayats. Meanwhile, 595 are district Panchayats.

Amid coronavirus outbreak this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a video-conference with sarpanchs across the nation on Friday, to mark the National Panchayati Raj Day 2020. A statement issued from his Office said the Indian PM would interact with the elected gram panchayat heads to highlight the importance of a decentralised form of governance.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 24, 2020 08:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).