Union Panchayati Raj and Rural Development Minister said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's biggest Mantra is 'Management, Transparency and Accountability'. Following his Mantra Union Government has transferred more than 16 lakh crores rupees under Direct Benefit Transfer and saved nearly 3 lakh crores. The Minister was addressing the National Conference on Good Governance- A step towards Transparency and Accountability in Panchayats on the theme ‘Sushasan – Sugamta se Sampanta’ (सुशासन – सुगमता से संपन्नता)  organized by Ministry of Panchayati Raj as part of its iconic week celebration under Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.

 

Shri Giriraj Singh, Union Minister of Panchayati Raj urged Panchayati Raj representatives to work with transparency and a sense of responsibility to be able to successfully digitize rural landscape/land records and establish e-governance effectively. He called upon Panchayat representatives to take necessary measures to become self-reliant and ensure sustainable development at the grassroots level. 

 

Terming Gram Sabha as the institutionalized foundation for decentralized participatory democracy, Union Minister of Panchayati Raj Shri Giriraj Singh appealed for conducting meaningful meetings of Gram Sabha and utilising the forum of Gram Sabha to resolve people’s problems and to make use of the available resources optimally through participatory planning.  He urged them to organize at least 6 Gram Sabhas in a year and to involve farmers, women and youth in the making of the annual plan of Panchayats. He also urged to organize a special Gram Sabha for women at least once a year and connect Self Help Groups with Panchayats.

 

Shri Faggan Singh Kulaste, Ministry of State for Rural Development stated that SVAMITVA Scheme has been one of the pioneering initiatives taken by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj to transform the rural landscape by providing Record Rights to rural household owners through Drone-based surveys.

 

Motivating the representatives of Panchayats, Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj Shri Kapil said that Sarpanch is the key person for the development of the Panchayat. Showing the way to become Aatmnirbhar Panchayat, he said Panchayats should not only utilize the funds received from central and state government efficiently but should also develop their own income sources.

Shri Sunil Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj made opening remarks in the inaugural session at Governance Conference and Shri (Dr.) C. S. Kumar, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj delivered a Vote of Thanks. While addressing the Governance Conference Shri Alok Prem Nagar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj highlighted the significance of Service Delivery at the grassroots level – realising Citizen's Charter.

During the session on ‘Service Delivery at grassroots level-realising Citizen’s Charter’, presentations were made on efforts made by States towards Standard of Services, Non-discrimination and Accessibility, Grievance Redress, in rural areas. Elected Representatives of Gram Panchayat from Andhra Pradesh also shared their experiences and impact of the Gram Sachivalaya initiative.

The session on ‘Smart Governance’ revolved around the transformational initiatives such BharatNet project, Government e-Marketplace; e-Gram Swaraj and AuditOnline. A brief presentation on the Digital Villages initiative in Gujarat was also made by ICICI Bank. 

The session on ‘Spatial Planning’ included discussion on critical areas such as the use of high-resolution maps/ spatial data; maps usage policies and the development of GIS-based services for the rural sector.

The event also saw participation from senior officials of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, and senior officials from States including Karnataka, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tripura, Odisha & Telangana.

The day-long event comprised of 6 sessions including, ‘Inaugural Session’; Service Delivery at grassroots level – realising Citizen’s Charter; Panchayat Planning & Implementation; Smart Governance; Spatial Planning and Concluding session.

 

Key Highlights:

• Keynote address by Shri Giriraj Singh, Union Minister of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj; and Special address by Shri Faggan Singh Kulaste, Union Minister of State for Rural Development
• Presentations on the theme Service Delivery at grassroots level including Kutumba (Family ID) by Karnataka; Bapu Seva Kendra by Karnataka and SARAL by Haryana
• Experience sharing by Elected Representatives of Gram Panchayat from Andhra Pradesh and a presentation by ServicePlus by NIC
• Presentations on Panchayat Planning and Implementation by Maharashtra, Tripura and Karnataka
• Presentations on the theme of Smart Governance by Bharat Broadband Network; Government e-Marketplace; Telangana and Odisha on AuditOnline
• Presentation on the theme of Spatial Planning by NIC & MoPR; Lt. Gen Girish Kumar; National Institute of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj and Geospatial World.
• Concluding remarks by Shri Kapil Moreshwar Patil, Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj

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