Parliament Question: Infrastructure for Panchayats in Assam

GOVERNMENTOF INDIA MINISTRYOF PANCHAYATIRAJ LOK SABHA STARREDQUESTION NO.377 ANSWERED ON19.08.2025 INFRASTRUCTURE FORPANCHAYATS IN ASSAM *377MD. RAKIBULHUSSAIN: Will the Minister of PANCHAYATIRAJ be pleased to State: (a) the details of the steps takenby the Government toimprove road,telecommunications andinternetinfrastructure for PanchayatsinAssam; (b) the manner in which the Government is providing access to modern technology for bettergovernance tothe Panchayats;and (c) whether the Government has allocated any special funds for this initiative, if so, the detailsthereof? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF PANCHAYATI RAJ (SHRIRAJIVRANJAN SINGH ALIAS LALAN SINGH) (a) to (c ) Astatementislaidonthe tableof theHouse 1STATEMENT IN RESPECT OF PART (a) TO (c) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION No.377 ANSWERED ON19.08.2025 (a) Rural roads, a state subject, are supported under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) to provide all-weather connectivity to eligible unconnected habitations and this comes under the purview of the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD). As per the information received from MoRD, PMGSY has evolved through PMGSY-II and III for upgradation and consolidation of 1.25 lakh km of key rural routes. As per the information provided by the MoRD, in Assam, till 12.08.2025, 9,269 road works (32,911 km) and 1,466 bridgesworth ₹22,349.39crore have beensanctioned, of which 9,124 works (32,035 km) and 1,423bridgesare completedat anexpenditure of ₹22,940crore. High-speed internet, data, and mobile services in remote and rural areas are being expanded through targeted projects such as the Comprehensive Telecom Development Plans for the North East and Islands, Left Wing Extremism (LWE) areas, Aspirational Districts, border villages, and the 4G Saturation Scheme. As per the information provided by the Department of Telecommunications, under the ongoing ₹26,316 Cr project to provide 4G in uncovered villages, 21,748 mobile towers (including931 in Assam) have been commissioned nationwide till June 2025. Providing internet infrastructure to Gram Panchayats (GPs) is under the Department of Telecommunications, which is implementing BharatNet in phases to connect all GPs and Traditional Local Bodies (TLBs) with high-speed internet. As per the data available on BharatNet Dashboard, as of 12.08.2025, 1,634 of 2,657 GPs/TLBs in Assam are service- ready. The Amended BharatNet Programme, approved on 04.08.2023, aims to upgrade existing networks, cover remaining GPs, and is managed by BSNL. An interface on the eGramSwaraj portal enables Panchayats in service-ready areas to apply for FTTH connections. (b) The Ministry is implementing the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (MMP) under RGSA, which has significantly enhanced transparency, efficiency, and governance at the grassroots level. The eGramSwaraj application, developed as part of the e-Panchayat MMP, hasfacilitateddigital planning,accounting,monitoring,andonline paymentsat the Panchayat level.The integrationofeGramSwarajwith thePublicFinancialManagementSystem(PFMS) enables real-time payments to vendors and service providers, ensuring seamless fund flow andreducingdelays. In FY 2024–25, over 2.60 lakh Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs) across the country onboarded on eGramSwaraj-PFMS interface. Over 2.51 lakh PRIs transferred more than ₹61,000 crore through the eGramSwaraj-PFMS interface. The progress made by States/UTs, under eGramSwaraj for the XV Finance Commission during the year 2024-25 is given at Annexure-I. To bring transparency to Panchayat procurement, the Ministry has integrated eGramSwaraj with the Government e-Marketplace (GeM). This integration allows Panchayats to procure goods and services through GeM via the eGramSwaraj platform, promoting the “Vocal for Local” initiative. Other applications developed by the Ministry like Meri Panchayat has endeavored to bring transparency in Panchayat Governance by making 2information on planning, activities and progress of works in Panchayat accessible to public. Similarly, Panchayat NIRNAY is an online application which aims to bring transparency and bettermanagement inconductof Gram SabhasbyPanchayats. Further, to strengthen the financial management of Panchayats, the ‘AuditOnline’ application hasbeendevelopedfor conducting online auditsof Panchayat accountspertaining to the utilization of Central Finance Commission funds. For audit year 2023-24, 2.51 lakh Audit Planshave beencreated and2.44lakhAudit Report have beengeneratedbyPRIs. (c) Under e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project funds are being provided to National Informatics Center Services Inc. (NICSI) for central level support for maintenance of e- Panchayat applications. The year wise annual expenditure on e-Panchayat Mission Mode Projectisasunder. Details of annualexpenditure onE-Panchayat Mission ModeProject (Rs. inCrore) FinancialYear ActualExpenditure 2020-21 17.79 2021-22 11.71 2022-23 15 2023-24 16.03 2024-25 13.47 5.00 2025-26 (As on12.08.2025) Additionally, the Ministry is implementing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of revamped Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) w.e.f. financial year 2022-23 with the main objective for capacitating Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs) through imparting training to ElectedRepresentatives(ERs) andotherstakeholders todeveloptheirgovernance capabilities for leadership roles to enable the Gram Panchayats to function effectively. Apart from training, the scheme also provide support to the States/ UTs to create e-enabled Panchayats like Computer and Co-location of Common Service Centres (CSCs) in Gram Panchayat Bhawan on limited scale. The year wise details of computers and CSC collocation approved under revamped RGSA is placed at Annexure-II and Annexure-III, respectively. Further, the details of funds released to States/UTs under the scheme which includes computers and CSCcollocationisat Annexure-IV. 3Moreover, As per the information provided by the Department of Telecommunications, as on 30.06.2025, Rs. 90813 crores have been disbursed/ utilized, including 1170 crores for Assam for enhancing telecom/ broadband connectivity in the countryundervariousDigital Bharat Nidhi (erstwhile USOF)Schemes. *** 4Annexure-I Annexure referred to inreplyto part(b)of the Lok SabhaStarred QuestionNo. 377answeredon19.08.2025regarding ‘Infrastructure forPanchayatsinAssam. Adoptionof eGramSwarajforthe XVFinanceCommission at Panchayat levelduringFY2024-25 S.No State Name 5 forebmuN latoT egalliV & stayahcnaP tnelaviuqE egalliV tayahcnaP draobno egalliV & stayahcnaP htiW tnelaviuqE tnemyaP enilnO forebmuN latoT kcolB & stayahcnaP tnelaviuqE tayahcnaP kcolB draobno kcolB htiW stayahcnaP tnemyaP enilnO forebmuN latoT stayahcnaP aliZ tnelaviuqE& tayahcnaP aliZ draobno stayahcnaP aliZ enilnO htiW tnemyaP 1 ANDHRAPRADESH 13328 13320 13002 660 660 645 13 13 13 2 ARUNACHALPRADESH 2108 2108 426 0 0 0 27 26 11 3 ASSAM 2662 2197 2183 191 191 191 30 29 27 4 BIHAR 8054 8054 8046 534 534 531 38 38 38 5 CHHATTISGARH 11701 11684 11540 146 146 146 33 33 27 6 GOA 191 191 97 0 0 0 2 2 2 7 GUJARAT 14656 14645 14006 248 248 248 33 33 33 8 HARYANA 6226 6226 5980 143 143 134 22 22 22 9 HIMACHALPRADESH 3615 3615 3557 81 81 81 12 12 12 10 JHARKHAND 4345 4345 4335 264 264 263 24 24 24 11 KARNATAKA 5954 5954 5942 238 232 127 31 31 29 12 KERALA 941 941 941 152 152 152 14 14 14 13 MADHYAPRADESH 23011 23011 22987 313 313 311 52 52 52 14 MAHARASHTRA 27955 27940 27025 351 351 312 34 34 34 15 MANIPUR 3812 161 125 0 0 0 12 6 4 16 MEGHALAYA 6817 0 0 2241 0 0 3 3 0S.No State Name 6 forebmuN latoT egalliV & stayahcnaP tnelaviuqE egalliV tayahcnaP draobno egalliV & stayahcnaP htiW tnelaviuqE tnemyaP enilnO forebmuN latoT kcolB & stayahcnaP tnelaviuqE tayahcnaP kcolB draobno kcolB htiW stayahcnaP tnemyaP enilnO forebmuN latoT stayahcnaP aliZ tnelaviuqE& tayahcnaP aliZ draobno stayahcnaP aliZ enilnO htiW tnemyaP 17 MIZORAM 842 842 832 0 0 0 0 0 0 18 NAGALAND 1289 977 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 19 ODISHA 6794 6794 6794 314 314 314 30 30 30 20 PUNJAB 13237 13234 10240 153 151 123 23 22 19 21 RAJASTHAN 11222 11219 10905 361 353 351 33 33 33 22 SIKKIM 199 199 195 0 0 0 6 6 6 23 TAMILNADU 12525 12525 12520 388 388 388 36 36 36 24 TELANGANA 12991 12768 12648 572 540 514 32 32 32 25 TRIPURA 1194 1194 1175 75 75 75 9 9 9 26 UTTARAKHAND 7795 7795 7757 95 95 95 13 13 13 27 UTTAR PRADESH 57691 57691 57638 826 826 819 75 75 75 28 WESTBENGAL 3339 3339 3339 345 345 345 22 21 21 Total 264494 252969 244235 8691 6402 6165 659 649 616Annexure-II Annexure referred to in reply to part (c) of the Lok Sabha Starred Question No. 377 answered on19.08.2025regarding‘Infrastructure forPanchayatsin Assam. State/UT-wise detailsof Computers approvedunderrevamped RGSA Sl.No. State/UTs Approved* 1 Andhra Pradesh 1922 2 Arunachal Pradesh 1936 3 Assam 2055 4 Bihar 4267 5 Chhattisgarh 6496 6 Goa 0 7 Gujarat 43 8 Haryana 1363 9 HimachalPradesh 334 10 Jammu andKashmir 1318 11 Jharkhand 2306 12 Karnataka 0 13 Kerala 200 14 Madhya Pradesh 289 15 Maharashtra 1625 16 Manipur 141 17 Meghalaya 1677 18 Mizoram 591 19 Nagaland 739 20 Odisha 350 21 Punjab 8334 22 Rajasthan 1554 23 Sikkim 235 24 Tamil Nadu 1594 25 Telangana 3452 26 Tripura 493 27 Uttar Pradesh 3145 28 Uttarakhand 4260 29 West Bengal 1712 30 Andaman& Nicobar 0 31 The Dadra & Nagar Haveli andDaman& Diu 4 32 Lakshadweep 0 33 Ladakh 127 34 Puducherry 0 Total 52,562 *Approved from 2022-23 to2025-26 (ason31.07.2025) 7Annexure-III Annexure referred to in reply to part (c) of the Lok Sabha Starred Question No. 377 answered on19.08.2025regarding‘Infrastructure forPanchayatsin Assam. State/UT-wise detailsof CSCCo-location approved underrevamped RGSA Sl.No State/UTs CSCApproved* 1 Andhra Pradesh 917 2 Arunachal Pradesh 939 3 Assam 175 4 Bihar 250 5 Chhattisgarh 130 6 Goa 0 7 Gujarat 412 8 Haryana 982 9 HimachalPradesh 1599 10 Jammu andKashmir 1106 11 Jharkhand 150 12 Karnataka 258 13 Kerala 8 14 Madhya Pradesh 0 15 Maharashtra 756 16 Manipur 31 17 Meghalaya 92 18 Mizoram 222 19 Nagaland 49 20 Odisha 0 21 Punjab 500 22 Rajasthan 177 23 Sikkim 54 24 Tamil Nadu 460 25 Telangana 241 26 Tripura 23 27 Uttar Pradesh 5612 28 Uttarakhand 800 29 West Bengal 5 30 Andaman& Nicobar 0 The Dadra And Nagar Haveli AndDaman And 31 Diu 0 32 Lakshadweep 0 33 Ladakh 3 34 Puducherry 0 Total 15951 *Approved from 2022-23 to2025-26 (ason31.07.2025) 8Annexure-IV Annexure referred to in reply to part (c) of the Lok Sabha Starred Question No. 377 answered on19.08.2025regarding‘Infrastructure forPanchayatsin Assam. Details of CentralSharereleased to States/UTs duringunderrevampedRGSAason date Rs. inCr. Sl.No StateName 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 2025-26 1 Andhra Pradesh 0.00 0.00 2.52 0.00 2 Arunachal Pradesh 108.69 72.09 70.00 70.00 3 Assam 55.29 77.70 60.00 35.00 4 Bihar 33.37 25.00 0.00 25.00 5 Chhattisgarh 0.00 17.57 16.50 10.00 6 Goa 0.00 0.89 1.35 0.00 7 Gujarat 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 8 Haryana 0.00 0.00 5.00 12.50 9 HimachalPradesh 60.65 19.31 27.21 10.00 10 Jammu andKashmir 40.00 65.00 65.00 25.00 11 Jharkhand 0.00 31.00 0.00 0.00 12 Karnataka 36.00 20.00 16.25 10.00 13 Kerala 30.40 10.00 10.00 10.50 14 Madhya Pradesh 28.00 32.17 40.00 0.00 15 Maharashtra 37.84 116.12 80.00 37.50 16 Manipur 8.63 9.56 0.00 0.00 17 Meghalaya 0.00 6.00 8.00 0.00 18 Mizoram 14.27 10.00 12.00 10.00 19 Nagaland 0.00 10.00 10.00 0.00 20 Odisha 11.40 27.33 20.00 20.00 21 Punjab 34.25 10.00 5.00 10.00 22 Rajasthan 0.00 21.72 15.00 0.00 23 Sikkim 6.01 6.00 7.00 0.00 24 Tamil Nadu 25.42 0.00 45.00 0.00 25 Telangana 0.00 20.00 0.00 0.00 26 Tripura 9.80 7.43 10.00 15.00 27 Uttar Pradesh 85.05 84.13 38.77 0.00 28 Uttarakhand 42.48 64.67 50.00 0.00 29 West Bengal 4.28 33.69 52.68 35.00 UnionTerritories 0.00 AndamanandNicobar 0.00 30 0.00 0.79 2.12 Island Dadra andNagar 0.00 31 Heveli And Daman 1.14 1.00 1.00 And Diu 32 Ladakh 0.00 1.00 0.00 0.00 Total 672.97 800.17 670.40 335.50 *Fundreleased asCentral Share 9