Panchayat Advancement Index

Why in news?

The Ministry of Panchayati Raj launched the Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI) to measure the overall development of Gram Panchayats.

About Panchayat Advancement Index

• What it is: It is a multi-domain and multi-sectoral index based on assessing progress towards Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the local level.
• Objective: It aims to identify development gaps of Panchayats through scores achieved in various Sustainable Development Goals at the local level and enable Panchayats to undertake evidence-based planning at the grassroots level.
• Indicators and Criteria: The Index adopts various socio-economic indicators and parameters to assess the state of welfare and development of local communities within the jurisdiction of a Panchayat.
• Key Themes: The Index evaluates the performance of Panchayats on the basis of 9 key themes. These themes are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and include-

1. Poverty free and livelihood-oriented Panchayats
2. Healthy Panchayats
3. Child friendly Panchayats
4. Water rich Panchayats
5. Clean and green Panchayats
6. Self-reliant infrastructure-oriented Panchayats
7. Socially just and safe Panchayats
8. Good governance Panchayats
9. Women friendly Panchayats

Different categories of performance of states

• Gram Panchayats have been classified into five categories based on their scores:
  • Full Achiever (90+)
  • Front Runner (75 to 90)
  • Performer (60 to 75)
  • Aspirant (40 to 60)
  • Beginner (below 40).

Overall performance of Panchayats

As per the data for the year 2022-23, out of a total of 2,55,699 Gram Panchayats, 2,16,285 Panchayats were covered. 

• Full Achiever: None
• Front Runner: Only 699 Panchayats (0.3%)
• Performer: 77,298 Panchayats (35.8%)
• Aspirant: 1,32,392 Panchayats (61.2%)
• Beginner: 5,896 Panchayats (2.7%)

State-wise performance in the Index:

Top performing states in different categories:

• Front Runner category:
  • Gujarat (346)
  • Telangana (270)
  • Tripura (42)
• Performer category
  • Gujarat
  • Maharashtra
  • Telangana
  • Madhya Pradesh
  • Uttar Pradesh
• Many panchayats in Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh are still in the Aspirant category, which require special attention.

Conclusion

The Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI) is an impressive effort to empower India's gram panchayats and move them in the right direction towards sustainable development. It not only gives panchayats an opportunity to improve their performance, but also promotes policy reform, transparency, and inclusive growth.