73 amendment of the indian constitution and its impact
Answers
The 73rd Amendment to India's constitution established an ingenious method of governing and caring for over one billion citizens while including women and minorities in leadership. In this lesson, we'll look at how the 73rd Amendment achieves this.
Colonialism significantly disrupted a huge variety of systems in India, replacing the way people had lived for many years with a system of British rule. When colonialism ended, India was again disrupted because the British systems were no longer enforced. The country needed to develop a new solution to organizing and running a huge country with over one-billion people.
73rd Amendment
The new constitution, introduced in 1992, was a huge movement toward establishing a system that was uniquely Indian yet made sure to include all citizens. The 73rd Amendment to that constitution, also introduced in 1992 and ratified in April of 1993, set forth guidelines for local systems of self-rule and created a whole new section to the constitution known as Part IX: The Panchayats. This section focused on organizing a three-tiered system for local self-rule, instituting a commission to oversee elections in each state, and empowering disenfranchised citizens.
Raj Panchayat System
The system of self-rule established in the 73rd Amendment resurrects a pre-colonial tradition, a council of five village elders charged with settling disputes and guiding village decisions. However, the new system expanded this to create three different tiers of councils.
On the village level, you have the gram panchayat. This council is elected by all villagers 18 years old and older. The size of the council depends on the population of the village, ranging from 5 to 30 members. This council nominates a pradhan, or council president, and an up-pradhan, or vice-president. Members serve for a five-year term and work toward the many development goals of the village. Additionally, the pradhan and up-pradhan serve as members of the panchayat samiti.
The panchayat samiti is also called a 'block' samiti because the block is made up of about 10 villages in a geographic area. This council comprises the leaders from the gram panchayats of the villages, representatives of different industries in the area, and the block development officer (BDO) appointed by the state government to aid the council in working with the state. They also serve for five years and elect their council chairman and vice-chairman from their ranks to run meetings and serve on a council at the highest tier of the panchayat system.
The highest tier of the panchayat system is the zila parishad and represents a distinct district within the state. Members are pooled from the leaders of the panchayat samitis within the district. Again, this council elects a chairman and vice-chairman from their members who serve for a period of four to five years depending on the regulations set in that district. They work directly with the government at the state level to help each block and the villages within the blocks to meet the needs of their people while continuing regional development programs.