By TIOL News Service

NEW DELHI, DEC 12, 2024: THE President of India Droupadi Murmu graced the National Panchayat Awards Conferment Ceremony 2024, organized by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, held yesterday at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. During the ceremony, the Hon'ble President conferred National Panchayat Awards upon 45 awardees (42 Panchayats and 3 Capacity Building Institutes) outstanding Panchayats selected across various categories for their exceptional contributions to sustainable and inclusive development. This historic event witnessed the presence of Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying (FAH&D), Minister of State Prof. S. P. Singh Baghel, Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Ministry of FAH&D, Vivek Bharadwaj, Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, along with other dignitaries, senior officials and more than 1200 Panchayat representatives from across the country.

Speaking on the occasion, the Hon'ble President of India Droupadi Murmu said that about 64 percent of the population of our country lives in villages. Therefore, the development and empowerment of villages and villagers is important to make India a developed nation. She was happy to note that in the past one decade the government has made serious efforts for empowerment of panchayats, which aims to achieve concrete results. The Hon'ble President said that the foundation of a developed India could be laid only on the basis of self-reliant and capable local bodies. Panchayats should try to become self-reliant by developing their own sources of revenue. This self-reliance will provide self-confidence to the Gram Sabhas and strength to the country. The President said that Panchayati Raj institutions are empowering women politically.

On this historic occasion Union Minister of Panchayati Raj Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh said that the government is working to empower Panchayats as pillars of rural development in accordance with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision wherein strong panchayats are serving as the foundation for becoming "Aatmanirbhar". Digital transfer of award money to the winning Panchayats of an amount of Rs. 46 crores were executed during the ceremony by the Union Minister. Rajiv Ranjan Singh said that these model panchayats are serving as benchmarks of excellence for the entire country. Highlighting the integration of SDG-based themes into Panchayat planning, he noted that these efforts are shaping villages into hubs of sustainable development.

The Union Minister also lauded the initiatives such as the SVAMITVA Scheme, which grants property rights to rural residents and technological innovations like the ‘Meri Panchayat' app and weather forecasting tools, which enhance service delivery and governance.  The Union Minister informed that the funds allocated to Panchayats through the Central Finance Commission for the development of basic infrastructure in villages have increased six-fold in the last ten years. Between the years 2005-06 and 2013-14, only Rs 60,972 crore was released to Panchayats, while from 2014-15 to 2023-24, this amount has increased six-fold to Rs 3,94,140 crore. During the 13th Finance Commission, the per capita annual allocation was Rs 176, which has now increased to Rs 674 under the 15th Finance Commission. He highlighted that many of the Panchayats winning awards today are being led by women (approximately 42% of Panchayats have female leadership), and they have set an example through their exceptional work.    Rajiv Ranjan Singh said that the core principle of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals Agenda 2030 is the principle of universality: "Leave no one behind." He said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in this Amrit Kaal of independence, the Government of India has taken firm steps with the resolve of Antyodaya (ensuring the welfare of the person standing at the farthest end of society). The Ministry has decided that at least 6 Gram Sabhas must be held in Panchayats every year and it will be ensured that complete record of the proceedings of the Gram Sabha meetings will be prepared transparently.

The Union Minister unveiled a booklet titled "Best Practices of Awardee Panchayats and Institutions" during the ceremony click here, documenting innovative initiatives undertaken by the award-winning Panchayats across the nation. The first copy of the booklet was presented to the Hon'ble President of India.

Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj, Prof. S. P. Singh Baghel commended the Panchayati Raj system for its evolution into a robust mechanism for inclusive and participatory governance. He highlighted its critical role in achieving Prime Minister's vision of a developed India by 2047 and the global SDG targets by 2030. The Union Minister praised the strides in financial transparency achieved through the eGramSwaraj–PFMS portal (today nearly 93% of Panchayats in the country are making all their payments online) through which over Rs 2.25 lakh crore has been disbursed, and acknowledged the leadership of women, who now constitute 46% of elected representatives, many of whom are spearheading transformative initiatives. He emphasized that digital empowerment and innovative service delivery are driving a new paradigm of inclusive and participatory rural development. He commended the Ministry's digital innovations, specifically mentioning the Meri Panchayat mobile app and Panchayat NIRNAY

This year's National Panchayat Awards included categories such as the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar, Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar, Gram Urja Swaraj Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar, Carbon Neutral Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar, and Panchayat Kshamta Nirmaan Sarvottam Sansthan Puraskar, honouring panchayats excelling in thematic areas like poverty alleviation, health, child welfare, water conservation, sanitation, infrastructure, governance, waste management and women's empowerment. These awards are instrumental in inspiring Panchayats across the nation to adopt best practices and contribute to the realization of the national agenda for a resilient, self-reliant and sustainable rural India. The event showcased the Ministry's strategic commitment to empowering and incentivizing Panchayati Raj Institutions in alignment with vision of Viksit Bharat@2047