National Panchayat Awards 2024

• 20 Jan 2025

Source: PIB 

Why in News? 

The National Panchayat Awards 2024 were awarded to 45 Panchayats across India by the President of India for their exceptional contributions to inclusive growth and sustainable development.  

• The event highlighted the pivotal role of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in advancing rural governance and environmental sustainability. 

What are the Key Facts Related to National Panchayat Awards 2024? 

• About: 
  • The National Panchayat Awards commemorate the enactment of 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992, which granted constitutional status to Panchayats as local self-governance institutions. 
  • These awards are typically presented on 24th April (National Panchayati Raj Day) every year. 
• Objective: 
  • The awards aim to promote best practices, foster a spirit of competition, and motivate Panchayats to excel in delivering quality governance and services to rural communities. 
  • These awards were revamped in 2022 to align with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), using a multi-level evaluation across Block, District, State/UT, and National levels.  
  • Panchayats are assessed on 9 thematic areas:  

 

• Significance: 
  • The awards highlight Panchayats' pivotal role in socio-economic development, grassroots governance, and advancing the SDGs through LSDGs. 
• Categories of Awards: 
  • Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar (DDUPSVP): Top 3 Gram Panchayats (GPs) under each of the 9 Localization of SDGs (LSDGs) themes. 
  • Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar: Top 3 GPs, Block Panchayats, and District Panchayats for overall excellence across all themes. 
  • Gram Urja Swaraj Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar: Recognizes GPs for renewable energy adoption. 
  • Carbon Neutral Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar: Awards GPs for achieving net-zero carbon emissions. 
  • Panchayat Kshamta Nirmaan Sarvottam Sansthan Puraskar: Honoring institutions supporting Panchayats in implementing LSDGs. 
• Awardees for 2024: 

 

What are the Other Initiatives Related to PRIs? 

• SVAMITVA Scheme:  
  • SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) scheme aims to promote the economic development of rural India by providing a "Record of Rights" for every rural household owner, thereby facilitating access to property and financial services. 
    • It was launched on National Panchayati Raj Day in 2020. 
• e-Gram Swaraj e-Financial Management System:  
  • e-Gram Swaraj is a simplified application developed for PRIs to manage work-based accounting, enhancing transparency and accountability in financial management. 
• Geo-Tagging of Assets:  
  • mActionSoft is a mobile-based solution designed to capture photographs with geo-tags (GPS coordinates) for assets generated by Panchayat works.  
• Citizen Charter: The Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) has introduced a platform for Panchayats to upload Citizen Charters, under the slogan “Meri Panchayat Mera Adhikaar – Jan Sevaayein Hamaare Dwaar”, to ensure efficient and timely service delivery to citizens. 

 UPSC Civil Services Examination, Previous Year Questions (PYQs) 

Prelims 

Q1. Local self-government can be best explained as an exercise in (2017) 

(a) Federalism 

(b) Democratic decentralisation 

(c) Administrative delegation 

(d) Direct democracy 

Ans: (b) 

Q. The fundamental object of Panchayati Raj system is to ensure which among the following? (2015)

1. People’s participation in development 
2. Political accountability 
3. Democratic decentralisation 
4. Financial mobilisation 

Select the correct answer using the code given below 

(a) 1, 2 and 3 only 

(b) 2 and 4 only 

(c) 1 and 3 only 

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4 

Ans: (c)