Frederick Noronha
If you live in a rural area, chances are that you are not very satisfied with the way your panchayat works. Ever since the panchayats were introduced in Goa in 1962, almost everyone would have some or the other reason for dealing with these five, seven or nine-member bodies. Their job, as we know is managing the village administration, some public services and even
grassroots development. That much is on paper.
In reality the panchayats face a number of challenges. Even if a few individuals in the system might be working hard, the majority are not particularly known for their efficiency.
Panchayats face financial and audit failures. They have to live with political interference from MLAs or state-level government bodies. Bureaucrats (like the Block Development Officer) can bypass elected bodies. Not all mandatory meetings are held as required, transparency and accountability is often not implemented in letter and spirit.
Panchayats also see dominant lobbies influencing elections. Even though panchayat elections in Goa are officially fought on a ‘non-party basis,’ they are in fact heavily politicised. One village this columnist encountered has seen panchayats supporting whichever MLA gets elected and in turn, the MLAs for four decades or more would not raise any “inconvenient” questions as far as the panchayat goes.
In this context, a republished and updated book ‘Panchayatantra’ helps the reader understand the complex issues involved in governing what might seem like a simple village in Goa. It calls itself a “handbook of the powers and functions of all panchayat and zilla parishad members and functionaries.”
As expected, this book is a mix of pan-Indian background (from where the law came) and also specifics from Goa. It is the latter that adds to its usefulness to the reader here.
On page 7, we get the explanation for the book’s title (“it seeks to suggest that the ‘art of local empowerment’ is possible by spreading information and knowledge”). Likewise, it argues that the presentation of information in the book is done in an “easy to use format” (page.7).
In nine chapters, Dr. Aurellano Freddy Fernandes who has been both a journalist and academician, gives us the background to the “changing role” of panchayats in India and how the 73rd Amendment changed it all.
He writes, “While the 73rd Amendment was an important step for democracy, it gave panchayats self-government only in name. Even after 30 years, these local institutions face big challenges. They need to change from being just political representatives to becoming true democratic bodies that work with local people.”
One can’t help wondering given the way things work, is this possible? Or are we being unduly optimistic here?
In 1992, the 73rd Amendment gave constitutional status to the Panchayati Raj system in India. It was meant to strengthen rural local self-government. The new law brought in a three-tiered structure; regular elections; reserved SC/ST seats; one-third seats for women; and created State Finance Commissions and State Election Commissions to support it all.
Yet Goa still remains among the worst performers on devolution of Constitutional powers to the panchayats.
Chapter 3 (pages 43 to 84) is what might interest every reader in Goa. It explains the situation here, and “humanises” the law. Instead of reading like a mix of different technical sections, it deals with things on a topic-by-topic basis. This is helpful.
There are insightful issues which emerge. For instance, how are gram seveks (the “friend” to villagers) meant to act in theory? What are their responsibilities allocated in Goa? And how does this actually work out on
the ground?
So many useful ideas on paper, but so much of a slip between the cup and the lip. Extension officers are meant to promote agriculture, animal husbandry and rural development. We know the rural reality better.
Then there’s the zilla panchayat, the district government. Our state has two ZPs. In Goa, there have been many debates over how these work in reality and their record over the decades. The role of the Governor, state government and state functionaries vis a vis panchayats is also discussed.
Towards the end of the book, we are introduced to ‘10 model village panchayats in India’. It might be tempting to wonder how the discourse over these has since shaped up. Sometimes, the hype generated by the headlines and the ground reality can be two rather different things. Ralegan Siddhi’s Anna Hazare went on to be more than a panchayat leader and played a critical role in the shaping of India’s political destiny. Today, the role is being re-evaluated.
In the last chapter, we are faced by questions and the harsh realities. Fernandes seems to be telling us without saying so in as many words, that if panchayats have’nt been able to fulfill their expectations then we need more panchayat raj. More awareness of course, one can’t argue against especially if this reaches
the citizen.
The annexures at the end may make for dry reading but this is a crucial part. Annexure IV tells us where Goa has failed or fared far lesser than expected. In terms of the law, elections, its finance commission, election commission, ZPs, panchayat staffing patterns, devolution of powers and the district planning committees.
For instance, till the end of 2025 not a single power was devolved to the village panchayats and ZPs. In 2024, the 3rd State Finance Commission report was not accepted by the government or tabled in the assembly. Panchayat staff were given benefits on par with government servants, but no separate panchayat cadre has been created and so on.
Not surprisingly, Goa scores very low on the panchayat front.
So how do tall claims go alongside low results and returns? How effective were training (sometimes supported by ISRO) in taking our small state closer to its goal? This book gives a hint of the questions that still need to be raised.
Not to be missed is the foreword to the second edition by Mani Shankar Aiyar. Today he may be seen chiefly as a Congress politician, but we should not forget that this early Union Cabinet Minister for Panchayati Raj was among those articulate bureaucrats later inducted into politics, known for his sharp points and incisive observations. He offers some useful pointers here too.
This book’s foreword is by the late Dr. Adi H. Doctor, an early professor at the Goa University when it was just founded.
The preamble to the book praises Benedict Furtado, SDB, the Don Bosco priest who mentored the author. The tribute paid to the “basketball pioneer” Furtado give an interesting insight into the way supportive educationists can build lives even in the Goa of today and yesterday, or the changing Panaji of the 1970s and the 1980s.
This is a book that can be read at multiple levels.
If panchayats are a topic of interest to you there will be significant information waiting to be gleaned out. If you are wondering why our villages can’t be more efficient and productive, there will also be many hints
coming through.
For a general reader on things Goan, the temptation might be to skip through some of the details. But a closer reading will surely give a better insight here too. The 288-page larger sized book is an 18th anniversary edition, having been published earlier once and in an updated version now. It is co-published by Civitas (7020062335) and Qurate, and priced at Rs 800.
