EMPOWERMENT OF PANCHAYATI RAJ INSTITUTIONS - 28th July 2026 - Ministry of Panchayati Raj - Gazette Notification PDF

Ministry of Panchayati Raj EMPOWERMENT OF PANCHAYATI RAJ INSTITUTIONS प्रव तथ: 28 JUL 2026 4:56PM by PIB Delhi The Ministry of Panchayati Raj has released a report titled “Status of Devolution to Panchayats in States - An Indicative Evidence-Based Ranking, 2024” in February 2025 to assess the effectiveness of devolution and the role of local governments in strengthening grassroots democracy, including assessment of the status of financial and administrative empowerment of Panchayats Raj Institutions (PRIs). This report presents the Devolution Index, which provides the overall scores and ranks for all States/Union Territories (UTs) covered under Part-IX of the Constitution, based on six identified dimensions: Framework, Functions, Finances, Functionaries, Capacity Enhancement, and Accountability. Many Gram Panchayats are facing difficulties in effectively implementing local development works due to inadequate financial resources, shortage of manpower and limited administrative powers. “Panchayat”, being “Local Government”, is a State subject and part of State List of Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India. Panchayats are set up and operate through the respective State Panchayati Raj Acts which may vary from State to State, subject to the provisions of the Constitution. Article 243G of the Constitution empowers the Legislature of a State to make provisions, by law, for the devolution of power and responsibilities upon Panchayat at the appropriate level, subject to such conditions as may be specified, with respect to the preparation of plans for economic development and social justice and implementation of schemes for economic development and social justice as may be entrusted to them including those in relation to matters listed in the Eleventh Schedule to the Constitution. The State legislatures are to consider the 29 subjects listed in the Eleventh Schedule for devolution of power and responsibilities to Panchayats. Accordingly, all matters relating to Panchayats, including, implementing local development works, manpower requirement, financial resources, administrative powers at the Panchayat level and enhancement of the financial and administrative autonomy of Panchayats, etc. fall within the purview of State Government. During the 15th Finance Commission (FC) award period (FY 2020-21 to FY 2025-26), including the interim period of FY 2020-21, a total of Rs. 2,82,632 Crores have been released against the total allocation of Rs. 2,97,555 Crores. The State-wise details of allocation & release of the funds under 15th FC is placed at Annexure I. Further, under the Revamped Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) of the Ministry, a total of Rs. 3601.77 Crores have been released to the States/UT during the last five year from FY 2021-22. The details of funds released to the States/UTs under the Revamped RGSA scheme during the last five years is at Annexure-II. As part of the Digital India initiative, MoPR has established an integrated digital governance ecosystem for Panchayats to promote transparency, accountability, and efficient financial management. This Ministry has launched ‘eGramSwaraj’ in 2020–21 as a unified digital platform which supports end-to-end planning, budgeting, accounting, monitoring, and online payments. Its integration with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS), Government e-Marketplace (GeM), and AuditOnline has enabled seamless fund flow, transparent procurement, payments and auditing, thereby strengthening governance andfinancial oversight at the grassroots. As a result, around 2,40,435 out of 2,64,998 i.e. 90.73% of PRIs have generated audit report in FY 2024-25. The tier-wise details of audit report generated in FY 2024-25 is placed at Annexure-III. The Ministry has implemented the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) since the financial year 2022-23 in States/ UTs. The main objective of the scheme is to build the capacity of PRIs by creating a learning ecosystem, especially through training for the Elected Representatives (ERs), functionaries, and other stakeholders to develop their governance capabilities to function effectively, and also by supporting exposure visits, development of training modules and materials, etc. A total of 1,66,41,509 Elected Representatives were trained from FY 2022–23 to FY 2026– 27 (as on 10.07.2026) under the scheme. A major step has also been taken to build capacity and train elected representatives and functionaries of Panchayats through institutes of excellence such as Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs)/ Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) under the Leadership/Management Development Program (MDP). Under this MDP training, 3,490 people have been trained so far as on 10.07.2026. The Ministry has also implemented the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (MMP) under RGSA scheme, which has significantly enhanced transparency, efficiency, and governance at the grassroots level. The eGramSwaraj application, developed as part of the e-Panchayat MMP, has facilitated digital planning, accounting, monitoring, and online payments at the Panchayat level. The integration of eGramSwaraj with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) enables real-time payments to vendors and service providers, ensuring seamless fund flow and reducing delays. During Financial Year 2025–26, 2,55,254 Gram Panchayats across the country, uploaded their Gram Panchayat Development Plans (GPDPs). Further, ‘AuditOnline’, an application has been developed for online audits of Panchayat accounts and their financial management. This application has been launched in April 2020 for transparent auditing of Central Finance Commission funds utilisation to strengthen financial management of Panchayats. The Ministry, has also undertaken a significant step to digitise the collection of Own Sources of Revenue (OSRs) of the Panchayats by developing the “SAMARTH Panchayat portal”, a dedicated digital platform that facilitates the generation of tax & non-tax demands and collection thereof, maintenance of tax registers, and online tracking of revenue. This digital empowerment is designed to bring transparency, efficiency, and scalability to local financial administration. In 2025, the Ministry has launched the Atma Nirbhar Panchayat Special Award (ANPSA) to promote Atmanirbharta through the augmentation of OSR by Panchayats. Moreover, to provide greater financial autonomy, enhance decision-making capacity at the grassroots level, and make Gram Panchayats self-reliant, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, in collaboration with IIM Ahmedabad, has developed a training module on OSR to strengthen the financial self-reliance of Gram Panchayats. The module helps elected representatives and Panchayat functionaries understand how OSR is generated through tax and non-tax sources. Under the Specialised Module of OSR, 2,75,893 have been trained so far as on 10.07.2026. Further, the Ministry has developed applications such as Meri Panchayat, which have 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 that aims at bringing transparency and better management in conduct of Gram Sabhas by Panchayats. Annexure-I State wise allocation and release under 15th Finance Commission as on 31st March 2026(Rs.in Crore) 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 Sl. States Allocation Release Allocation Release Allocation Re No. 1 AndhraPradesh 2,625 2,625 1,939 1,918 2,010 1,977 2 ArunachalPradesh 231 231 170 170 177 89 3 Assam 1,604 1,604 1,186 1,186 1,228 1,228 4 Bihar 5,018 5,018 3,709 3,709 3,842 3,842 5 Chhattisgarh 1,454 1,454 1,075 1,075 1,114 1,114 6 Goa 75 75 55 55 57 48 7 Gujarat 3,195 3,195 2,362 2,362 2,446 2,446 8 Haryana 1,264 1,264 935 935 968 967 9 HimachalPradesh 429 429 317 317 329 329 10 Jharkhand 1,689 1,689 1,249 1,249 1,293 1,293 11 Karnataka 3,217 3,217 2,377 2,376 2,463 2,094 12 Kerala 1,628 1,628 1,203 1,203 1,246 1,246 13 MadhyaPradesh 3,984 3,984 2,944 2,944 3,050 3,050 14 Maharashtra 5,827 5,827 4,307 4,267 4,461 4,073 15 Manipur 177 177 131 66 135 - 16 Meghalaya 182 182 135 95 140 - 17 Mizoram 93 93 69 69 71 71 18 Nagaland 125 125 92 92 96 48 19 Odisha 2,258 2,258 1,669 1,669 1,728 1,72820 Punjab 1,388 1,388 1,026 1,026 1,062 1,062 21 Rajasthan 3,862 3,862 2,854 2,854 2,957 2,955 22 Sikkim 42 42 31 31 33 33 23 TamilNadu 3,607 3,607 2,666 2,666 2,761 2,761 24 Telangana 1,847 1,847 1,365 1,365 1,415 1,415 25 Tripura 191 191 141 141 147 147 26 UttarPradesh 9,752 9,752 7,208 7,208 7,466 7,466 27 Uttarakhand 574 574 425 419 440 439 28 WestBengal 4,412 4,412 3,261 3,261 3,378 3,378 Total 60,750 60,750 44,901 44,726 46,513 45,29 % (percentage) 100 100 97 Annexure-II State/UT-wise details of funds released under Revamped RGSA during the last five years (Rs.in crore) Sl. State 2021- 2022- 2023- 2024- 2025- No 22 23 24 25 26 1 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 0.00 0.00 0.79 2.12 1.00 2 Andhra Pradesh 38.54 0.00 0.00 2.52 35.00 3 Arunachal Pradesh 30.07 108.69 72.09 70.00 57.00 4 Assam 44.04 55.29 77.70 60.00 64.00 5 Bihar 63.77 33.37 25.00 0.00 26.00 6 Chhattisgarh 7.93 0.00 17.57 16.50 29.007 Dadra& Nagar Haveli and 0.00 1.14 1.00 1.00 1.25 Daman &Diu 8 Goa 0.59 0.00 0.89 1.35 1.00 9 Gujarat 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 8.00 10 Haryana 0.00 0.00 0.00 5.00 17.91 11 Himachal Pradesh 32.42 60.65 19.31 27.21 14.00 12 Jammu & Kashmir 40.00 40.00 65.00 65.00 57.00 13 Jharkhand 7.74 0.00 31.00 0.00 15.20 14 Karnataka 29.15 36.00 20.00 16.25 11.03 15 Kerala 12.00 30.40 10.00 10.00 18.00 16 Lakshadweep 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 17 Ladakh 1.08 0.00 1.00 0.00 0.72 18 MadhyaPradesh 47.11 28.00 32.17 40.00 49.95 19 Maharashtra 73.34 37.84 116.12 80.00 54.49 20 Manipur 2.98 8.63 9.56 0.00 1.48 21 Meghalaya 0.00 0.00 6.00 8.00 5.02 22 Mizoram 5.56 14.27 10.00 12.00 16.50 23 Nagaland 4.58 0.00 10.00 10.00 10.70 24 Odisha 1.33 11.40 27.33 20.00 62.24 25 Puducherry 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 26 Punjab 10.78 34.25 10.00 5.00 30.30 27 Rajasthan 17.27 0.00 21.72 15.00 13.00 28 Sikkim 1.19 6.01 6.00 7.00 3.2129 TamilNadu 39.89 25.42 0.00 45.00 20.00 30 Telangana 0.00 0.00 20.00 0.00 3.00 31 Tripura 4.67 9.80 7.43 10.00 29.99 32 UttarPradesh 83.08 85.05 84.13 38.77 28.05 33 Uttarakhand 0.00 42.48 64.67 50.00 44.09 34 WestBengal 15.14 4.28 33.69 52.68 40.00 Sub-Total 614.25 672.97 800.17 670.40 768.13 Others Implementing Agencies 3.75 10.01 14.69 23.77 23.63 Grand Total 618.00 682.98 814.86 694.17 791.76 ForFY2025–26,the releases comprise funds through both SNA till 30th June2025 and SNA- SPARSH since 1st July 2025. This information was given by Union Minister Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh in a written reply in Lok Sabha on 28th July 2026. *** AA Annexure-II Annexure referred to in reply to part (c) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1534 answered on 28.07.2026 regardin “Empowerment of Panchayati Raj Institutions”. Tier-wise details of Audit Report generated in Financial Year 2024-25 S.No. State Name Total No No. of Zilla Total No. No. of Total No of No. of of Zilla Panchayats of Block Block Gram Gram Panchayat with Panchayat Panchayats Panchayats Panchaya Generated with with Report Generated Generat Report Report 1 Andhra 13 13 660 654 13,328 13,2 Pradesh 2 Arunachal 27 19 - - 2,108 1,9 Pradesh3 Assam 30 23 197 154 2,770 2,0 4 Bihar 38 4 534 242 8,053 5,0 5 Chhattisgarh 33 23 146 138 11,713 11,6 6 Goa 2 - - - 191 1 7 Gujarat 33 33 248 248 14,687 14,5 8 Haryana 22 22 143 136 6,230 6,1 9 Himachal 12 12 92 81 3,615 3,6 Pradesh 10 Jharkhand 24 24 264 259 4,345 4,3 11 Karnataka 31 - 238 - 5,952 5,9 12 Kerala 14 - 152 1 941 8 13 Madhya 52 37 313 223 23,011 20,2 Pradesh 14 Maharashtra 34 - 351 18 27,953 26,8 15 Manipur 12 - - - 3,811 16 Meghalaya 3 - - - - 17 Mizoram - - - - 843 18 Nagaland - - - - 1,330 19 Odisha 30 30 314 314 6,794 6,7 20 Punjab 23 22 154 152 13,237 13,2 21 Rajasthan 33 33 361 352 11,230 11,0 22 Sikkim 6 6 - - 199 1 23 Tamil Nadu 36 36 388 388 12,525 12,5 24 Telangana 32 31 572 534 12,994 12,525 Tripura 9 9 75 75 1,194 1,1 26 Uttarakhand 13 - 95 - 7,787 27 Uttar 75 75 826 825 57,691 57,6 Pradesh 28 West Bengal 22 21 345 287 3,339 3,1 Total 659 473 6,468 5,081 2,64,725 2,34,8 Source: Report generated through auditonline.gov.in . *** AA (रलीज़ आईडी: 2290504) आगंतुक पटल : 1190 इस वज्ञ को इन भाषाओ ंम पढ़: Urdu , ही