On December 11 2024, The Hon’ble President of India Droupadi Murmu conferred National Panchayat Awards 2024 upon 45 awardees including 42 Panchayats and 3 Capacity Building Institutes, selected across different categories for their outstanding contributions to sustainable and inclusive development.
- The event was organised by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoR) at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, Delhi.
- The event demonstrated the MoR’s strategic commitment to promoting and incentivizing Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) which is in line with vision of Viksit Bharat@2047.
Key People: Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) and Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying (MoFAH&D); Union Minister of State (MoS) Prof. S.P Singh Bhagel, MoPR and MoFAH&D; Vivek Bharadwaj, Secretary, MoPR, along with other dignitaries, senior officials and over 1,200 Panchahyat representatives from across the country were present at the event.
National Panchayat Awards:
i.These awards are conferred annually by the MoPR since 2011 to acknowledge and incentivize the best-performing Panchayats across the country.
- These awards are organised annually on 24th April (National Panchayti Raj Day) to commemorate the enactment of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992.
Note: This year National Panchayat Awards held in December 2024 instead on 24th April due to the General Elections to the Lok Sabha (Lower House of the Parliament) held from April to June in 2024.
ii.These Awards recognises the efforts of those Panchayats which excels across 9 thematic areas like: Poverty-free and enhanced livelihoods Panchayat; healthy Panchayat; child-friendly Panchayat; water-sufficient Panchayat ; clean and green Panchayat; self-sufficient infrastructure Panchayat; Panchayat with good governance; women friendly Panchayat and Socially Just and secured Panchayat.
iii.The winners are broadly classified into 5 main categories, with main focus on recognizing grassroots governance, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability:
- Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar (DDUPSVP): This award recognizes top 3 Gram Panchayats (GPs) based on their performance across 9 Localisation Sustainable Development Goals (LSDGs) themes.
- Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar: This award recognizes the top 3 GPs, Block Panchayats (BPs), and District Panchayats (DPs) with the highest average score across all 9 LSDGs.
- Gram Urja Swaraj Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar: This award is given to top 3 GPs, recognizing their contributions for adopting and utilizing Renewable Energy (RE) sources.
- Carbon Neutral Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar: This award is given to top 3 GPs in recognition of their efforts in achieving net-zero carbon emissions.
- Panchayat Kshamta Nirmaan Sarvottam Sansthan Puraskar: This award is given to top 3 Indian institutions for rendering exemplary support to Panchayats in achieving the LSDGs.
National Panchayat Awards 2024:
i.This year total 1.94 lakh GPs participated in the competition. Among 42 award-winning Panchayats, 42% are being led by women.
ii.The Panchayats were assessed based on their performance across various LSDG themes, and they were evaluated by various committees , from the Block to the National level to ensure a fair and transparent process.
iii.Total Rs 46 crore was distributed as prize money to 45 awardees, with amount directly transferred to their respective bank accounts.
iv.Total 27 GPs were recognised for their outstanding performance across 9 LSDGs under the category of DDUPSVP.
v.The GPs ranked at 1st, 2nd and 3rd position received the monetary prize of Rs 1 crore, Rs 75 lakh and Rs 50 lakh, respectively.
- Manyachiwadi (Maharashtra) bagged the Best Panchayat award under this category and received the monetary prize of Rs 1.50 crore. While Panchayats ranked at 2nd and 3rd spot received the monetary prize of Rs 1.25 crore and Rs 1 crore, respectively.
- Chatrapur (Odisha) secured the Best Block Panchayat award and received the monetary prize of Rs 2 crore. While Panchayats ranked at 2nd and 3rd spot received the monetary prize of Rs 1.75 crore and Rs 1.50 crore, respectively.
- Gomati village (Tripura) secured the Best District Panchayat award and received the monetary prize of Rs 5 crore. While Panchayats ranked at 2nd and 3rd spot received the monetary prize of Rs 3 crore and Rs 2 crore, respectively.
vi.Top 3 GPs under Gram Urja Swaraj Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar: Manyachiwadi in Maharashtra (1st); Thakchara in Tripura (2nd) and Kasira in Odisha (3rd) received the monetary prize of Rs 1 crore, Rs 75 lakh and Rs 50 lakh, respectively.
vii.Similarly, the top 3 GPs under Carbon Neutral Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar and Panchayat Kshamta Nirmaan Sarvottam Sansthan Puraskar received the monetary prize of Rs 1 crore, Rs 75 lakh and Rs 50 lakh, respectively.
Winners of Deen Dayal Upadhyay Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar:
| Award Theme | Rank | Gram Panchayat | State/Union Territory (UT) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverty Free and Enhanced Livelihoods Panchayat | 1 | Galibeedu | Karnataka |
| 2 | Perumpadappa | Kerala | |
| 3 | Betcherra | Tripura | |
| Healthy Panchayat | 1 | Bommasamudrum | Andhra Pradesh (AP) |
| 2 | Keluapalli | Odisha | |
| 3 | Jajuar Middle | Bihar | |
| Child-Friendly Panchayat | 1 | Jengrai | Assam |
| 2 | Bhartaul | Uttar Pradesh (UP) | |
| 3 | Rajkang | Tripura | |
| Water-Sufficient | 1 | Nayampudi | AP |
| 2 | Sikander | Himachal Pradesh (HP) | |
| 3 | Debbari | Tripura | |
| Clean and Green Panchayat | 1 | Tagarampudi | AP |
| 2 | Sumoor | Ladakh | |
| 3 | Modale | Maharashtra | |
| Self-sufficient Infrastructure in Panchayat | 1 | Keeranatham | Tamil Nadu (TN) |
| 2 | Sahapur | Odisha | |
| 3 | Parthu | Bihar | |
| Socially-Just & Socially Secured Panchayat | 1 | Muppalla | AP |
| 2 | Thanadhar | HP | |
| 3 | Hardibhata | Chhattisgarh | |
| Panchayat with Good Governance | 1 | Vavkulli Two | Gujarat |
| 2 | Khaltsi | Ladakh | |
| 3 | Punhada | Bihar | |
| Women-Friendly Panchayat | 1 | South Manubankul | Tripura |
| 2 | Chillapalli | Telangana | |
| 3 | Varaganoor | TN |
Nanaji Deshmukh Sarvottam Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar:
| Category | Rank | Panchayat | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Gram Panchayats | 1 | Manyachiwadi | Maharashtra |
| 2 | Bebejia DemowBangthai | Assam | |
| 3 | Thanadhar | HP | |
| Best Block Panchayats | 1 | Chatrapur | Odisha |
| 2 | Amarpur | Tripura | |
| 3 | Tirora | Maharashtra | |
| Best District Panchayats | 1 | Gomati | Tripura |
| 2 | Koraput | Odisha | |
| 3 | Udupi | Karnataka |
Special Category Awards:
| Special Category Award | Rank | Gram Panchayat/ Institute | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gram Urja Swaraj Vishesh Panchayat Puraskar | 1 | Manyachiwadi | Maharashtra |
| 2 | Thakchara | Tripura | |
| 3 | Kasira | Odisha | |
| Carbon Neutral Vishesh Panchayat Purasksar | 1 | Bela | Maharashtra |
| 2 | Kendrikela | Odisha | |
| 3 | Milak Amawti | UP | |
| Panchayat Kshamta Nirman Sarvottam Sansthan Puraskar | 1 | Kerala Institute of Local Administration | Kerala |
| 2 | State Institute of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj | Odisha | |
| 3 | Yashwantrao Chavan Academy of Development Administration (YASHADA) | Maharashtra |
Key Highlights:
i.While addressing the event, Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh highlighted that the integration of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)-based themes into Panchayat planning and further underscored that these efforts will help in the transformation Indian villages into the hub of sustainable development.
ii.He also appreciated the initiatives like: Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas (SVAMITVA) scheme, which grants property rights to residents living in rural areas of the country and technological innovations like: “Meri Panchayat” app and weather forecasting tools , which improve service delivery and governance.
iii.He informed that the funds allocated to Panchayats through the Central Finance Commission for the development of basic infrastructure in villages have increased six-fold i.e. to Rs 3,94,140 crore in last 10 years.
iv.During the event, Union Minister Rajeev Ranjan Singh also launched a booklet titled “Best Practices of Awardee Panchayats and Institutions”, featuring innovative initiatives undertaken by the award winning Panchayats across the country.
v.Union MoS S.P. Singh Bhagel underscored the critical role PRIs in achieving Prime Minister (PM)’s vision of a developed India by 2047 and the global SDG targets by 2030.
- He also lauded the progress made in ensuring financial transparency through the eGramSwaraj-PFMS portal and over Rs 2.25 lakh crore has been disbursed through this portal.
Note: At present, nearly 93% of Panchayats across the country are making all their payments online.
About Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR):
Union Minister- Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh (Constituency- Munger, Bihar)
Minister of State (MoS) – S.P. Singh Baghel (Constituency- Agra, Uttar Pradesh, UP)
