Describe the working of panchayat raj system in India.
Rural local government is popularly known by the name Panchayati Raj, Each Village, or a group of villages in some states, has a Gram Panchayat. This is a council consisting of several ward members, often called Panchayat, and a President or Sarpanch. These are directly elected by all the adult people living in that ward or the village. It is the decision making body for the entire village. The panchayat works under the overall supervision of the Gram Sabha. All the voters in the village are its members. It has to meet at least twice or thrice in a year to approve the annual budget of the gram panchayat and to review the performance of the gram panchayat. The local government structure goes right up to the district level. A few gram panchayats are grouped together to form what is usually called a panchayat Samiti or block. The members of this representative body are elected by all the panchayat members in that area. All the panchayat in a district together constitutes the Zilla (district) Parishad. Most members of the Zilla Parishad are elected. Members of the Lok Sabha and MLA’S of that district and some other officials of other district-level bodies are also its members. Zilla Parishad Chairperson is the political head of the Zilla Parishad.
