Parliament Question: 15th Finance Commission Grants

GOVERNMENTOF INDIA MINISTRYOF PANCHAYATI RAJ LOK SABHA UNSTARREDQUESTION NO. 1592 ANSWEREDON 09.12.2025 15th FINANCE COMMISSIONGRANTS 1592.DR. AMOLRAMSINGKOLHE: Will the Minister of PANCHAYATIRAJ be pleased to state: (a) the total funds released to the Gram Panchayats and local bodies under various Central schemes, including the 15thFinance Commission Grants, during the last three yearsin the Shirur constituency; (b) the measures being taken to strengthen the financial autonomy and administrative powers of these localbodiestoenable themtoundertake localdevelopment projectseffectively; (c) the steps being taken to ensure transparency and accountability in the utilisation of these funds andtopreventtheirmisuse; and (d) the Government’s strategy to empower local communities and promote participatory governance inthe State? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF PANCHAYATI RAJ (SHRIRAJEEVRANJAN SINGH ALIAS LALAN SINGH) (a) Panchayat-wise details of fund allocation are not maintained centrally, as the distribution of these funds among different tiers of Panchayats is the responsibility of the State Government. As per information furnished bythe Government of Maharashtra, a total of 505Gram Panchayats in the Shirur Parliamentary Constituency received ₹12,457.77 lakh under the Fifteenth Finance Commission grantsduring the last three years. Additionally, one Gram Panchayat receiveda sum of Rs.100 lakh under the Incentivization of Panchayat scheme of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj during the same period. (b) Article 243G of the Constitution empowers “the Legislature of a State tomake provisions, by law, for the devolution of power andresponsibilities uponPanchayat at appropriate level, subject to such conditions as may be specified, with respect to the preparation of plans and implementation of schemes for economic development and social justice”. In order to strengthen the financial autonomy and administrative powers of local bodies to enable them to undertake local development projects effectively measures have been taken to ensure that all Finance 1Commission grants are deposited directly into the accounts of Panchayats by the States. These funds are spent by Panchayats from their own accounts, without the interference of States, through the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) in accordance with the norms prescribed bythe Finance Commission inrespect of tiedanduntiedgrants. There has been progressively huge increase in financial devolution to Panchayats as the per capita perannum allocation of Central Finance Commission (CFC) grantsincreased from Rs.176 in 13th Finance Commission to Rs. 674 in 15th Finance Commission. In addition to the provision of grants under the CFC, the Government has taken several steps, such as, developing specialized modules on generation of Own Sources of Revenue (OSR) by Panchayats, commissioning of research studies to assess the potential and challenges in mobilization and augmentation of OSRs by the Panchayats, conferring of Atma Nirbhar Panchayat Visesh Puraskar for augmentation of OSRs by the Panchayats and driving awareness activities on best practices on OSR generation to enable the Panchayats to generate OSR to become financially autonomousandself-reliant. (c) In order to ensure end-to-end tracking of funds—from receipt to expenditure—and effectively prevent any misuse or misappropriation, it has been made mandatory to record all transactions on PFMS and eGramSwaraj portal. Article 243J of the Constitution further empowers State Legislatures to make provisions for the maintenance and audit of Panchayat accounts. 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. Further, 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. Panchayat NIRNAY is an online application which 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 improvedfinancialmanagement. (d) To empower localcommunities andtopromote participatorygovernance,MoPR launchesthe People’s Plan Campaign (PPC) commencing from 2nd October (Gandhi Jayanti) every year 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 2levels, i.e. Zilla Parishad at District level, Panchayat Samiti at Block level and Gram Panchayat at village level. Under the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA), training is provided to the elected representatives and functionaries at the District, Block and Gram Panchayat levels for preparation of effective PDPs. These trainings cover different aspects of effective PDP formulation, ensuring that development activities are planned and implemented in alignment with localneedsandpriorities. *** 3