Ministry of Panchayati Raj 12-Year Reform Achievement Report
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj has documented significant progress in strengthening Panchayati Raj Institutions over the past twelve years, focusing on democratic decentralization, digital governance, and fiscal empowerment. Under the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA) introduced in 2018-19 and revamped from 2022-23, the Ministry has completed training and capacity building for 4.10 crore elected representatives and functionaries from more than 2.70 lakh Panchayati Raj Institutions across all three tiers. This includes specialized training for 33.55 lakh women elected representatives from FY 2022-23 to FY 2025-26, focusing on Panchayat functioning, service delivery, and leadership skills.
Infrastructure development has been substantial, with over 25,100 Gram Panchayat Buildings and more than 61,000 computers provided under RGSA and its revamped version. The Gram Panchayat Development Plans (GPDPs) have been institutionalized across more than 2.55 lakh Gram Panchayats, with digital integration through the e-GramSwaraj platform enhancing transparency in local development planning.
The SVAMITVA Scheme, launched in 2020, has conducted drone-based surveys of inhabited rural areas and distributed approximately 3.18 crore property ownership cards across 1.92 lakh villages as of June 10, 2026. This initiative aims to reduce property disputes, improve access to institutional credit, and strengthen Panchayat revenue potential.
Digital transformation has been a cornerstone achievement, with over 2.59 lakh Panchayats onboarded onto the e-Panchayat ecosystem. Integration with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) has enabled real-time financial monitoring and online payments, processing transactions exceeding ₹3.16 lakh crore through the integrated platform as of June 10, 2026. The Meri Panchayat App has recorded over one crore downloads, facilitating citizen access to information on development works, Panchayat meetings, and public assets.
Fiscal decentralization has advanced significantly, with ₹2.82 lakh crore in grants released to Rural Local Bodies during the Fifteenth Finance Commission period (2020–26), representing 94.98% of the total allocation. The Sixteenth Finance Commission has recommended ₹4,35,236 crore for Rural Local Bodies for the period 2026-27 to 2030-31, marking an 84% increase from previous allocations. The SAMARTH Panchayat Portal and Atmanirbhar Panchayat Program have been launched to strengthen Own Source Revenue mobilization through digital tools for revenue assessment, demand generation, and collection.
Innovation in governance includes the April 2025 introduction of the Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI), assessing over 2.59 lakh Gram Panchayats against Localised Sustainable Development Goals themes, which won the gold prize at National Awards for e-Governance 2026. AI implementation through SabhaSaar, launched in August 2025, has enabled automatic generation of Gram Sabha Minutes of Meetings in 23 Indian languages, with over 1.35 lakh Panchayats generating more than three lakh meeting minutes. In October 2024, the Ministry launched India's first Gram Panchayat-level weather forecasting initiative with India Meteorological Department and Ministry of Earth Sciences, providing localized weather forecasts to support rural communities.
Special initiatives include strengthened implementation of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA) through specialized training manuals, a dedicated PESA-GPDP Portal, a Centre of Excellence for PESA, and the country's first PESA Ranking framework. Women empowerment efforts feature the Sashakt Panchayat-Netri Abhiyan launched in 2025, identification of 744 Model Women Friendly Gram Panchayats, and the Nirbhay Raho Campaign for women's safety and leadership. Youth engagement includes the Model Youth Gram Sabha initiative covering 619 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, 200 Eklavya Model Residential Schools, and government schools, engaging over 29,000 students across 819 residential schools in 2025.