CENTRAL SUPPORT FOR STRENGTHENING RURAL LOCAL BODIES

Ministry of Panchayati Raj CENTRAL SUPPORT FOR STRENGTHENING RURAL LOCAL BODIES प्रव तथ: 16 DEC 2025 3:46PM by PIB Delhi 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 functioning of the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) on a continuous basis. The details of ongoing schemes and recent major initiatives/reforms of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj to strengthen PRIs through Centrally supported programmes, including reforms promoted under the revamped Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) are given in Annexure-I. The Ministry of Panchayati Raj implements the only Centrally Sponsored Scheme of RGSA for capacity building of the elected representatives and functionaries of the PRIs. Also, assistance in limited scale is provided for infrastructure needs such as construction of Gram Panchayat Bhawan and computerisation. The State/UT-wise release of Central Share of funds and utilisation under the RGSA scheme during the last five years is as per Annexure-II. The release/expenditure have been audited up to the year 2023-24. The proposals submitted by the States/UTs in their respective Annual Action Plans (AAPs) are examined within the framework of RGSA scheme. The AAPs of 2025-26 received from 32 States/UTs, which was considered and approved by Central Empowered Committee, consisting of different components viz. Capacity Building & Training (CB&T), institutional support for CB&T and basic infrastructure like Gram Panchayat Bhawan ad computer on limited scale. Under the scheme of RGSA, 1.37 crore participants have been provided training under different categories. The State / UT- wise detail is at Annexure-III. Under the scheme, construction of 13,342 Gram Panchayat Bhawans and procurement of 55,587 computers have been approved for effective functioning of Gram Panchayats. The State-wise detail of Gram Panchayat Bhawan and computers approved under the scheme is at Annexure-IV. Further, to strengthen institutional support for CB&T, recurring cost for 25 State Panchayat Resource Centres and 490 District Panchayat Resource Centres have been approved under the scheme during 2025-26. To empower local communities and to promote participatory governance, MoPR conducts People’s Plan Campaign (PPC) every year commencing from 2nd October (Gandhi Jayanti) to facilitate the preparation of Panchayat Development Plans (PDP) at District, Block and Gram Panchayat levels focusing on inclusive development. Under PPC, structured meetings at Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) levels are held to prepare development plans. These deliberative forums bring together local communities, elected members, Self-help Groups (SHGs), and line department officials to discuss local needs, review progress of earlier works, and prioritise future actions. Preparation of PDPs ensures participatory planning at all three levels, i.e. Zilla Parishad at District level, Panchayat Samiti at Block level and Gram Panchayat at village level.Under the Digital India initiative, Ministry of Panchayati Raj has been promoting financial as well as governance transparency, efficiency, and accountability at the grassroots level by developing and popularising various digital platforms and applications. The eGramSwaraj application has been designed to facilitate digital planning, accounting, monitoring, and online payments at the Panchayat level. The integration of eGramSwaraj with the PFMS enables real-time payments to vendors and service providers, ensuring seamless fund flow and reducing delays. The eGramSwaraj application has been integrated with the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) to bring transparency to Panchayat procurement. This integration allows Panchayats to procure goods and services through GeM via the eGramSwaraj platform, promoting the “Vocal for Local” initiative. The digital applications developed by the Ministry like Meri Panchayat have endeavored to bring transparency in Panchayat Governance by making information on planning, activities and progress of works in Panchayat accessible to public. The Online Panchayat NIRNAY application aims to bring transparency and better management in conduct of Gram Sabhas by Panchayats. Further, the ‘AuditOnline’ application developed under the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (MMP) facilitates online audits of Panchayat accounts and supports improved financial management. Under the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA), training is provided to the elected representatives and functionaries of the PRIs at all levels for building their governance capabilities on various subjects/themes including preparation of effective PDPs and e-Governance tools. In addition to the arrangement of training in State Institute of Rural Developments & Panchayati Raj (SIRDPR), District Panchayat Resources Centers at the State and District levels, at National level, the National Institute of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj (NIRDPR) conducts various capacity building training programmes. Besides, the Leadership/ Management Development Programme (MDP) are being conducted in collaboration with the Institute of Excellence such as Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA), etc. with the major objective of honing the essential leadership skills, including but not limited to communication, decision-making, and conflict resolution, thereby nurturing effective leadership qualities of the Panchayats. Annexure-I Details of Schemes and Major Initiatives/Reforms of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj for Strengthening the Panchayati Raj Institutions Sl. Schemes/Initiatives Objectives No. 1 Centrally Sponsored Scheme To strengthen Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) through of Rashtriya revamped Gram capacity building and training of the Elected Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) Representatives (ERs) and their functionaries, and providing infrastructural support like construction of Gram Panchayat Bhawan and computerization. 2 Incentivization of Panchayats To promote healthy competition among PRIs by recognising (IoP), a central component of and rewarding best-performing Panchayats for their the RGSA scheme achievements in service delivery, public welfare, and recently—their progress toward Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).3 Mission Mode Project on e- To fund various e-governance projects to develop digital Panchayats (MMP- solutions to promote digitalization of Panchayats, bringing ePanchayat), a central efficiency, accountability, and transparency to the component of the RGSA functioning of PRIs and contributing to their overall scheme, transformation. The digital platform such as eGramSwaraj and AuditOnline have been developed for overall transformation in rural local governance and ensuring transparency. Recent Major Initiatives/Reforms 4 Enablement of Panchayats to The Ministry of Panchayati Raj is actively working in Mobilize Own Sources of collaboration with the States to augment OSR generation in Revenue PRIs by facilitating the formulation of relevant rules. The Ministry has developed the Samarth digital application for tax demand generation and collection at the PRI level and is collaborating with Institutions like IIM on capacity-building modules. 5 Leadership/ Management The Leadership/ Management Development Programme Development Programme (MDP) for Elected Representativeness and officials of (MDP) for Panchayati Raj Panchayats with the institute of Excellence such as Indian Intuitions (PRIs) Institute of Management (IIM), Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA), etc. has been started with the major objective of honing the essential leadership skills, including but not limited to communication, decision-making, and conflict resolution, thereby nurturing effective leadership qualities of the Panchayats. 6 Long-Term Domestic Training Ministry of Panchayat Raj has taken initiative for the Programmes for Higher “Funding for Long-Term Domestic Training Programmes” Learning of Panchayat for upto one year of duration for officials of PRIs and Officials Panchayati Raj Department in the States/UTs under the State component of RGSA. The move aims at ensuring that the officials receive advanced, sector-specific training from Institutes of Excellence which will upgrade their skill set for better service delivery at the grassroots. 7 Residential Foundation Ministry is supporting Residential Foundation Training Training Programme up to 45 Programme at State/UT level for up to 45 days for the newly days under RGSA for the recruited functionaries of PRIs, including Block Newly Recruited Development Officers, Panchayat Development Officers, Functionaries of PRIs: Panchayat Secretaries, Village Extension Officers, Accountants, Tax Collectors, Rozgar Sahayaks, Panchayat Engineering Cadre officials, Gram Sevaks/Sevikas and other officials recruited specifically for serving in the PRIs.8 Shashkta Panchayat Netri The Ministry has launched a comprehensive specialized Abhiyan training module for the capacity building of Women Elected Representatives (WERs) of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). The focus of the training module are to build the capacity of the WERs on different aspects of rural governance; enhance the knowledge & practical skills for effective delivery of roles & responsibilities as elected representatives and also to develop the leadership, communication, managerial& decision-making skills for effective women led governance. 9 Centre of Excellence on PESA Towards strengthening the local self-governance in tribal areas and effective implementation of the Provisions of the (For PESA States such as Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, (PESA-1996), Centre of Excellence on PESA has been Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, established in the Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Amarakantak, Madhya Pradesh under the aegis of Ministry Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan of Panchayati Raj for capacity building of tribal leaders, and Telangana) preservation & promotion of customary law and practices and strengthening institutional support and research. 10 Model Youth Gram Sabha To foster awareness and participation among the youth in grassroots democracy and the Panchayati Raj system by simulating the functioning of Gram Sabhas within educational institutions, the initiative has been launched encouraging the school students to participate and learn the functioning of the rural local governance and instil democratic values of inclusivity and equity, and build leadership and critical thinking skills. It also seeks to enhance awareness about local governance and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), thereby empowering students to contribute meaningfully to national development. 11 Meri Panchayat Application Meri Panchayat App is a Mobile Governance (m- Governance) App developed to make information, aggregated from different portals of this Ministry pertaining to functioning of Gram Panchayats, easily accessible to public. 12 Gram Panchayat Level The Gram Panchayat level weather forecasting initiative, Weather Forecasting developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) and the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), provides Gram Panchayats with weather forecast on temperature, rainfall, wind speed, cloud cover, humidity with a five-day weather forecast and hourly updates.13 eGramSwaraj-BHASHINI This integration allows eGramSwaraj to provide services in integration 22 scheduled languages of India through Bhashini’s AI- powered translation, making local-language accessibility a reality for users across India. 14 SabhaSaar To make Gram Sabha documentation faster, easier, and in a structured format, an AI-enabled application-"SabhaSaar" has been developed and launched on 14.08.2025 to automatically generate Minutes of Meetings (MoM) from audio and video recordings of Gram Sabha meetings. 15 Citizen Charter and Service Citizen Charter, has since been extended to the Gram Delivery by PRIs Panchayat with the prime emphasis on ease of living. In 2021, the Model Citizen Charter was launched to standardize service delivery across Panchayats by setting clear service standards, time limits, grievance redress mechanisms, and citizen scrutiny. Annexure-II State/UT-wise Funds Released and Utilized under the Scheme Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan from 2020-21 to 2024-25 (Rs. in Crores) 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 2023 Sl. State Name Funds Funds Funds Funds Funds Funds Fun No Released Utilized^ Released Utilized^ Released Utilized^ Rele 1 ANDHRA 22.34 65.20 38.54 7.45 0.00 5.62 0.00 PRADESH 2 ARUNACHAL 0.00 8.53 30.07 35.42 108.69 132.45 72.0 PRADESH 3 ASSAM 26.12 62.48 44.04 30.79 55.29 95.15 77.7 4 BIHAR 0.00 38.63 63.76 59.31 33.37 70.07 25.0 5 CHHATTISGARH 4.04 11.24 7.93 6.04 0.00 29.52 17.5 6 GOA 0.00 0.98 0.59 0.39 0.00 1.12 0.89 7 GUJARAT 0.00 11.54 0.00 5.16 0.00 0.01 0.002020-21 2021-22 2022-23 2023 Sl. State Name Funds Funds Funds Funds Funds Funds Fun No Released Utilized^ Released Utilized^ Released Utilized^ Rele 8 HARYANA 9.89 3.39 0.00 7.90 0.00 3.06 0.00 9 HIMACHAL 22.10 12.40 32.42 74..74 60.65 37.49 19.3 PRADESH 10 JAMMU AND 25.00 9.56 40.00 66.15 40.00 57.75 65.0 KASHMIR 11 JHARKHAND 2.34 0.92 7.74 1.78 0.00 18.44 31.0 12 KARNATAKA 0.44 49.32 29.15 32.34 36.00 25.67 20.0 13 KERALA 8.13 11.40 12.00 12.15 30.40 23.13 10.0 14 MADHYA 71.42 110.91 47.11 84.40 28.00 145.17 32.1 PRADESH 15 MAHARASHTRA 66.76 73.71 73.34 102.26 37.84 129.03 116. 16 MANIPUR 3.41 4.18 2.98 0.00 8.63 3.31 9.56 17 MEGHALAYA 3.97 0.60 0.00 2.64 0.00 6.41 6.00 18 MIZORAM 21.19 4.72 5.56 0.52 14.27 25.48 10.0 19 NAGALAND 3.72 9.15 4.58 10.38 0.00 0.00 10.0 20 ODISHA 2.94 4.24 1.33 23.62 11.40 24.83 27.3 21 PUNJAB 13.45 22.42 10.78 2.88 34.25 42.91 10.0 22 RAJASTHAN 12.98 34.65 17.27 4.54 0.00 32.53 21.7 23 SIKKIM 4.75 5.77 1.19 6.01 6.01 4.98 6.00 24 TAMIL NADU 56.88 103.01 39.89 71.12 25.42 8.53 0.00 25 TELANGANA 12.00 1.69 0.00 2.42 0.00 3.19 20.02020-21 2021-22 2022-23 2023 Sl. State Name Funds Funds Funds Funds Funds Funds Fun No Released Utilized^ Released Utilized^ Released Utilized^ Rele 26 TRIPURA 2.53 5.42 4.67 4.98 9.80 3.76 7.43 27 UTTAR 32.54 245.33 83.08 109.25 85.05 96.33 84.1 PRADESH 28 UTTARAKHAND 26.75 28.67 0.00 15.33 42.48 57.15 64.6 29 WEST BENGAL 33.52 56.50 15.14 35.28 4.28 50.89 33.6 489.21 996.56 613.17 740.51 671.83 1133.98 797. UTs 30 Andaman & 0.00 0.83 0.00 1.09 0.00 1.03 0.79 Nicobar 31 DNH&DD 0.00 0.35 0.00 0.18 1.14 4.5 1.00 32 Ladakh 2.15 0.00 1.08 1.56 0.00 1.52 1.00 Sub-Total 491.36 614.25 672.97 800. Agencies 8.59 3.75 10.01 14.6 Total 499.95 997.74 618.00 743.34 682.98 1141.03 814. Note: Fund utilized includes matching State Share and interest earned in Single Nodal Account (SNA). Data source for 2022-23 onwards is PFMS-SNA-01 report and prior to that UCs received from State. ^ Includes unspent balance of previous year and State share. Annexure-III Year-wise and State/UT- wise details of participants provided training under RGSA scheme Sl. States 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 2025-26 (As No on 25.11.2025 1 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 1874 2865 5221 11432 Andhra Pradesh 649156 165001 325643 201930 3 Arunachal Pradesh 3,711 6138 12344 8794 4 Assam 227733 348183 144936 49383 5 Bihar 404406 163809 435896 124860 6 Chhattisgarh 121099 163292 90559 42922 7 Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman 575 1000 1073 680 and Diu 8 Goa 1777 3548 4519 1694 9 Gujarat 250 1938 90368 22112 10 Haryana 4859 12431 11909 89417 11 Himachal Pradesh 9531 92458 120455 10722 12 Jammu & Kashmir 284138 350026 82534 9091 13 Jharkhand 8302 54056 135817 88437 14 Karnataka 213467 363317 321380 196658 15 Kerala 179478 149153 129632 44072 16 Ladakh 0 0 26 31 17 Madhya Pradesh 281610 86884 242279 130586 18 Maharashtra 1041165 984321 363111 29978 19 Manipur 894 5591 195 2871 20 Meghalaya 11,588 74410 78537 6401 21 Mizoram 2659 9800 9841 5496 22 Nagaland 1832 3435 4725 2389 23 Odisha 79116 160774 279505 14543524 Punjab 36378 13359 122848 58785 25 Rajasthan 2481 96389 71795 263011 26 Sikkim 13,552 11249 6709 3805 27 Tamil Nadu 106560 101513 78490 37384 28 Telangana 14506 2441 1701 13175 29 Tripura 7743 63715 54228 33849 30 Uttarakhand 48241 144374 22342 3171 31 Uttar Pradesh 263409 82712 76302 192955 32 West Bengal 174974 272762 228081 154769 33 NIRDPR and Others 5229 1438 1941 1709 Total 42,02,293 39,92,382 35,54,942 19,77,715 Annexure-IV State / UT wise Status of GP Bhawan/Computers Approved RGSA Scheme since 2022-23 Sl. State/UT Number of GP Bhawan Number of Computers No. approved Approved 1 A&N Islands (UT) 2 0 2 Andhra Pradesh 617 1922 3 Arunachal Pradesh 1339 1936 4 Assam 610 2055 5 Bihar 500 4267 6 Chhattisgarh 334 6496 7 DNHDD (UT) 17 48 Goa 1 25 9 Gujarat 412 43 10 Haryana 892 1363 11 Himachal Pradesh 343 334 12 J&K (UT) 1000 1318 13 Jharkhand 0 2306 14 Karnataka 258 0 15 Kerala 7 200 16 Ladakh (UT) 3 127 17 Lakshadweep (UT) 0 0 18 Madhya Pradesh 50 289 19 Maharashtra 1376 1625 20 Manipur 43 141 21 Meghalaya 36 1677 22 Mizoram 368 591 23 Nagaland 183 739 24 Odisha 500 350 25 Puducherry (UT) 0 0 26 Punjab 759 8334 27 Rajasthan 43 1554 28 Sikkim 27 235 29 Tamil Nadu 146 159430 Telangana 856 3452 31 Tripura 131 493 32 Uttar Pradesh 1273 3145 33 Uttarakhand 1012 7260 34 West Bengal 204 1712 Total 13,342 55,587 This information was given by Union Minister Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh in a written reply in Lok Sabha on 16th December 2025. **** AA (रलीज़ आईडी: 2204621) आगंतुक पटल : 454 इस वज्ञ को इन भाषाओ ंम पढ़: Urdu , ही