Panchayat Advancement Index

Prelims – Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Mains (GS II) – Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance.

Why in news?

In a push for data driven governance, the Department of Panchayati Raj has come up with the first ever Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI).

Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI) – Aims to assess and measure the progress made by grassroots-level institutions in achieving localized SDGs, thereby contributing to the attainment of SDG 2030.
It is a multi-domain and multi-sectoral index that is intended to be used to assess the overall holistic development, performance & progress of Panchayats.
The index takes into account various socio-economic indicators and parameters to gauge the well-being and development status of the local communities within the jurisdiction of a Panchayat.
Launched by – Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
9 themes – PAI has been compiled based on 435 unique local Indicators (331 mandatory & 104 optional) on nine themes.

These themes align global goals with rural realities, helping local governments tailor their strategies for holistic development.
Categories of performance – Based on these, gram panchayats are grouped into one of the 5 categories of performance
1. Achiever (90+)
2. Front runner (75 to below 90)
3. Performer(60 to below 75)
4. Aspirant (40 to below 60)
5. Beginners (below 40)
Performance – The 2022-23 PAI data reveals that out of 2,55,699 Gram Panchayats, 2,16,285 submitted validated data.
699 (0.3%) Panchayats emerged as Front Runners, 77,298 (35.8%) were Performers, 1,32,392 (61.2%) were Aspirants while 5,896(2.7%) Gram Panchayats were at the Beginner Level.
None of the Gram Panchayat was qualified as an Achiever and as of now, no inter-state comparison has been done.
Gujarat led the index with 346 Gram Panchayat as Front Runners, followed by Telangana with 270 Front Runners.
States with a high number of Performers include Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana along with Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
Bihar, Chhattisgarh, and Andhra Pradesh have a significant share of Aspirant Gram Panchayats.
Significance of PAI – Promotes Evidence-Based Planning.
Enhances Accountability & Transparency.
Fosters Competitive Federalism.
Localizing SDGs.
Informs Resource Allocation.