There can never be two opinions about the fact that panchayats are the engines of development, prosperity, modernisation, advancement and growth of villages. We all know that nearly 70 per cent of Indians live in villages, and it was because of this that Mahatma Gandhi advocated that if we really want to see India as a developed nation then we have to establish Panchayats in India.
Panchayats pave the way for decentralisation of powers and shift power to the people, so that they can make their development possible by their own hands. It is only Panchayats which can clear all the possible loopholes in the ways by which benefits reach the doors of the poor under any government scheme.
Mahatma Gandhi called Panchayati Raj Institutions as Gram Swaraj. It means that this system of governance imparts an independent status to a village. A village becomes independent in its social, agricultural, educational, and economic development. Unlike the bureaucratic set-up, panchayats facilitate developmental opportunities at the doorsteps of every villager. Unlike an MLA, MLC or a Minister, a Sarpanch is well aware of the problems, needs and desires of people of his village, and also remains accountable to them because he lives among them.
Today we can see the rich becoming richer and the poor reduced to starvation because development schemes fail to reach homes of the poor. The funds sanctioned disappear somewhere in between the public and the government. Only Panchayats can bridge the link between the needy and the provider.
Jammu and Kashmir is a militancy-hit state. It has been struggling with poverty and unemployment on one hand and violence on the other. Our youth, because of lack of employment opportunities, are easily lured towards the wrong path. If they are provided with ample opportunities of employment, they would definitely become part of development. The former Governor of erstwhile State of Jammu & Kashmir, Satya Pal Malik, in an appreciable move, had announced Panchayat elections after a delay of many years. In spite of threats from different groups, he stood firm and paved the way for empowerment of people of J&K. A 70 percent turnout of voters in the first phase of Panchayat polls confirmed the wish of common people of J&K to be part of development, not unrest. Our state administration along with help from the central government succeeded in establishing a three-tier system of Panchayat Raj Act in J&K with elections to Block Development Council (BDC) and District Development Council (DDC).
Establishment of panchayats in 4,490 villages will give start to a new era of development, prosperity, peace and harmony in Jammu and Kashmir. These panchayats will get Rs 4,335 crore grant from the centre under the 14th Finance Commission. On average, every panchayat will get Rs 20 lakh per annum for development purposes. Not just this, Satya Pal Malik armed these grassroots institutions with more powers by amending Panchayati Raj Act 1989. Malik has made devolution of powers a part of the Act. The State Administrative Council (SAC) under him not only gave adequate teeth to Panchayats but also made it binding for government departments to follow Panchayat recommendations. As per a report given by an official spokesman, Panchayats have been given powers over 20 departments. In addition to this, to make Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs) true harbingers of socio-economic development, this amendment will ensure well-defined taxation powers to Panchayats for generation of adequate resources for themselves.
Now the role of Gram Sabhas in supervising implementation of important schemes, like MGNERGA, Pardhan Mantri Awas Yojana, Mid Day Meal and ICDS, has also been defined. Monitoring of primary schools, Primary Health Centres and Aganwardi Centers has been delegated to PRIs. To strengthen the Panchayats further, additional posts of accountant, data entry operator and Block Panchayat Inspector have been sanctioned for every Panchayat, as announced by former Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
In the conclusion, I want to say only one thing: that only Panchayat Raj Institutions can accomplish the dreams of self-governance of people of Jammu & Kashmir.

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SUNAINA MALIK