The Gazetteers Department

A village panchayat functions as a unit of Local Self-Government and of development activities in rural areas. Under the Bombay Village Panchayats Act, 1958 (Bombay Act No. III of 1959), an independent village panchayat is to be established in a village having a population of 500 and above. So also under special circumstances an independent panchayat can be established in a village with a population of 250 and above, if sufficient reasons exist for the same. There are 1,167 villages excluding municipal towns in the district. Fifty-eight villages out of these will be submerged under the waters of the Koyna river on account of the Hydro-Electric Project at Koynanagar. There were 676 village panchayats in the Satara district on the 31st March 1960, covering all the villages in the district.

Gram Sabha.

In respect of every local area declared to be a village, all persons whose names are included in the list of voters referred to in section 12 of the Bombay Village Panchayats Act, 1958, are deemed to constitute a Gram Sabha for the village. The meetings of the Gram Sabha are ordinarily held in the Office of the panchayat or the village chavadi or at any convenient public place in the village as may be determined by the Sarpanch or in his absence by the Upa-Sarpanch. The first meeting of the Gram Sabha in every financial year is to be held within two months from the commencement of that year and the second meeting in November on such date and at such time as may be fixed by the Sarpanch, or in his absence by the Upa-Sarpanch. The Sarpanch may, at any time on his own motion, and shall, if so required by the Panchayat Mandal or the Collector, call an extra-ordinary meeting of the Gram Sabha. The Panchayat is to place before the first meeting of the Gram Sabha:—

(i) The annual statement of accounts;

(ii) The report on the administration of the preceding financial year;

(iii) The development and other programme of work proposed for the current financial year;

(iv) The last audit note and replies, if any, made thereto;

(v) Any other matter which the Panchayat Mandal or the Collector or any other officer authorised by the Collector requires to be placed before such meeting,

The Panchayat is to consider suggestions, if any, made by the Gram Sabha.

The maximum number of members for a panchayat is fifteen and the minimum number is seven. The members are to be elected on adult franchise.

In every panchayat two seats are to be reserved for women. The State Government has been given power to reserve seats for the representation of Scheduled Castes and Tribes, if found necessary, having regard to the population in the village of such castes and tribes, till the expiration of the total extended period of 12 years from the commencement of the constitution of India, i.e., till 1962.

The members of the panchayat hold office for a term of four years which may be extended by the Collector for a period not exceeding in the aggregate five years. Every panchayat is to be presided over by the Sarpanch to be elected from amongst its own members. The panchayat is also to elect one of its members to be Upa-Sarpanch.

Having regard to the extent and population of the village and the income of panchayat, there is appointed a Secretary for every panchayat or a group of panchayats. He is appointed by Government and is a full time Government Servant, His salary and allowances are not a charge on the village Fund.

Sub-section (1) of section 45 of the Bombay Village Panchayats Act, 1958, lays down that subject to the general control of the Panchayat Mandal, it shall be the duty of a panchayat, so far as the village fund at its disposal will allow, to make reasonable provision within the village in regard to all or any of the following matters, namely:—

I. In the sphere of sanitation and health—

(a) the supply of water for domestic use and for cattle;

(b) the cleansing of public roads, drains, bunds, tanks and wells (other than tanks and wells used for irrigation) and other public places or works;

(d) the preservation and improvement of the public health;

(e) the regulation by licencing or otherwise of tea, coffee and milk shops.

(f) provision, maintenance and regulation of burning and burial grounds;

(g) the lay out and maintenance of playgrounds and of public gardens;

(h) the disposal of unclaimed corpses and unclaimed cattle;

(i) the construction and maintenance of public latrines;

(j) the taking of measures to prevent the outbreak, spread or recurrence of any infectious disease;

(k) the reclaiming of unhealthy localities;

(l) the removal of rubbish heaps, jungle growth, prickly pear, the filling in of disused wells, insanitary ponds, pools, ditches, pits or hollows, the prevention of water-logging in irrigated areas and other improvement of sanitary conditions;

(m) maternity and child welfare;

(n) providing medical relief;

(o) the encouragement of human and animal vaccination.

II. In the sphere of public works—

(a) the removing of obstructions and projections in public streets or places and in sites, not being private property, which are open to the public, whether such sites are vested in the panchayat or belong to Government;

(b) the construction, maintenance and repair of public roads, drains, bunds and bridges:

Provided that if the roads, drains, bunds and bridges vest in any other public authority, such works shall not be undertaken without the consent of that authority;

(c) the maintenance and regulation of the use of public buildings, grazing lands, forest lands including lands assigned under section 28 of the Indian Forests Act, 1927, tanks and wells (other than tanks and wells used for irrigation), vesting in or under the control of the panchayat;

(d) the lighting of the village;

(e) the control of fairs, bazars, tonga stands and cart stands;

(f) the construction and maintenance or control of slaughter houses;

(g) the planting of trees along roads, in market places and other public places, and their maintenance and preservation;

(h) the destruction of stray dogs;

(i) the construction and maintenance of dharma shalas;

(j) the management and control of bathing or washing ghats which are not managed by any authority;

(k) the establishment and maintenance of markets;

(l) the construction and maintenance of houses for the conservancy staff of the panchayat;

(m) the provision and maintenance of camping grounds;

(n) the establishment, control and management of cattle pounds;

(o) the establishment and maintenance of works or the provision of employment in times of scarcity;

(p) the extension of village sites, and the regulation of buildings in accordance with such principles as may be prescribed;

(q) the establishment and maintenance of warehouses;

(r) excavation, cleansing and maintenance of ponds for the supply of water to animals.

III. In the sphere of education and culture—

(a) the spread of education;

(b) the establishment and maintenance of akhadas, clubs and other places for recreation;

(d) the establishment and maintenance of libraries and reading rooms;

(e) the promotion of social and moral welfare of the village including the promotion of prohibition, the removal of untouchability, amelioration of the condition of backward classes, the eradication of corruption and the discouragement of gambling and useless litigation.

IV. In the sphere of self-defence and village defence—

(a) watch and ward of the village, and of the crops therein:

Provided that the cost of watch and ward shall be levied and recovered by the panchayat from such persons in the village, and in such manner, as may be prescribed;

(b) regulating, checking and abating of offensive or dangerous trades or practices;

V. In the sphere of administration—

(a) the numbering of premises;

(b) the drawing up of programmes for increasing the output of agricultural and non-agricultural produce in the village;

(c) the preparation of the statement showing the requirement of supplies and finances needed for carrying out rural development schemes;

(d) acting as a channel through which assistance given by the Central or State Government for any purpose reaches the village;

(e) making surveys;

(f) the control of cattle stands, threshing floors, grazing grounds and community lands;

(g) the establishment, maintenance and regulation of fairs, pilgrimages and festivals;

(h) the preparation of statistics of unemployment;

(i) reporting to proper authorities, village complaints which are not removable by panchayat;

(j) the preparation, maintenance and upkeep of panchayat records;

(k) the registration of births, deaths and marriages in such manner, and in such form, as may be laid down by Government by general or special order in this behalf;

(l) the preparation of plans for the development of the village.

VI. In the sphere of welfare of the people—

(a) assistance in the implementation of land reform schemes;

(b) the relief of the crippled, destitute and the sick;

(c) assistance to the residents when any natural calamity occurs;

(d) making arrangements for co-operative management of lands and other resources in the village, and organisation of collective farming, credit societies and multi-purpose co-operative societies;

(e) the reclamation of waste land and bringing waste land under cultivation with the previous permission of the State Government;

(f) organising voluntary labour for community works and works for the uplift of the village.

(g) opening of fair price shops.

VII. In the sphere of agriculture and preservation of forests—

(a) the improvement of agriculture and establishment of model agricultural farms;

(b) the establishment of granaries;

(c) bringing under cultivation waste and fallow lands vested by Government in the panchayat;

(d) securing minimum standards of cultivation in the village with a view to increasing agricultural production;

(e) ensuring conservation of manurial resources, preparing compost and sale of manure;

(f) the establishment and maintenance of nurseries for improved seeds and provision of implements and stores;

(g) the production and use of improved seeds;

(h) the promotion of co-operative farming;

(i) crop experiments and crop protection;

(j) minor irrigation;

(k) raising, preservation and improvement of village forests.

VIII. In the sphere of breeding and protecting cattle-improvement of cattle and cattle breeding and the general care of livestock.

IX. In the sphere of village industries—

the promotion, improvement and encouragement of cottage and village industries.

X. In the sphere of the collection of land revenue—

(a) collection of land revenue when so empowered by the State Government under section 169; and

(b) maintenance of village records relating to land revenue in such manner and in such forms as may be prescribed from time to time by or under any law relating to land revenue.

Subject to such conditions as the State Government may impose, it is also competent to a panchayat to perform other administrative duties including the distribution of irrigation water that may be assigned to it by the State Government after consultation with the Panchayat Mandal.

Under section 124 (i) of the Act it is competent to a panchayat to levy all or any of the following taxes and fees at such rates as may be decided by it (but subject to the minimum and maximum rates which may be fixed by Government) and manner and subject to such exemptions as may be prescribed, namely:—

(i) a tax on buildings (whether subject to payment of agricultural assessment or not) and lands (which are not subject to payment of agricultural assessment), within the limits of the village;

(ii) octroi;

(iii) a pilgrim tax;

(iv) a tax on fairs, festivals and other entertainments;

(v) a tax on bicycles and on vehicles drawn by animals;

(vi) subject to the provisions of article 276 of the Constitution, a tax on the following professions, trades, callings or employments, that is to say: —

(a) shop-keeping and hotel-keeping;

(b) any trade or calling (other than agriculture) which is carried on with the help of machinery run by steam, oil or electric power or by manual labour;

(c) the profession or calling of brokers in cattle markets;

(vii) a general sanitary cess for the construction or maintenance, or both the construction and maintenance, of public latrines and for the removal and disposal of refuse;

(viii) a general water rate which may be imposed in the form of a rate assesed on buildings and lands or in any other form as may be best adapted to the circumstances of any class of cases;

(ix) any other tax (not being a toll on motor vehicles or trailers, save as provided by section 14 of the Bombay Motor Vehicles Tax Act, 1935), which the State Legislature has, under the Constitution, power to impose in the State and which has been sanctioned by the State Government;

(x) a fee on markets and weekly bazars;

(xi) a lee on cart-stands and tonga-stands;

(xii) a special water rate for water supplied by the panchayat through pipes, which may be imposed in any form including that of charges for such water supplied, fixed in such mode or modes as shall be best adapted in the circumstances of any class of cases;

(xiii) a fee for the supply of water from wells and tanks vesting in it, for purposes other than domestic use and for cattle;

(xiv) a fee for temporary erection on, or putting up projections over, or temporary occupation of, any public street or place;

(xv) a special sanitary cess upon private latrines, premises or compounds cleansed by the panchayat agency;

(xvi) a fee for cleansing a cess pool constructed on land whether belonging to a panchayat or not;

(xvii) a fee for grazing cattle on grazing lands vesting in a panchayat.

The tax upon buildings or lands is not to be levied by a panchayat on all buildings and lands or any class of buildings or lands situated in an area predominently populated by members of the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes.

In regard to the fact that a factory itself provides in the factory area all or any of the amenities which such a panchayat provides, a panchayat may arrive at an agreement with any factory to recieved a lump-sum contribution in lieu of all or any of the taxes levied by the panchayat.

Section 128 of the Act gives the Panchayat Mandal power to compel a panchayat to levy or increase any of the taxes or fees specified if it appears to the Mandal that the regular income of the panchayat falls below what is necessary for the proper discharge of the obligatory duties of the panchayat.

Section 131 of the Act lays down that Government shall pay to every panchayat in each year an amount not less than 25 per cent. and not exceeding 30 per cent of the ordinary land revenue collected in the revenue year immediately preceding, within the limits of village. For the purpose of the payment of the grant aforesaid, panchayats are, having regard to the factors prescribed by Government to be classified into such grades or categories and the percentage of the grant payable to the panchayats of each such category is to be such as may be determined by Government from time to time.

According to section 63 of the Act, there is to be a Nyaya Panchayat for the administration of civil and criminal justice in a group of contiguous villages not being less than five in number. It consists of one person elected by such panchayat which is to elect out of the members of the Gram Sabha of that village, one person for the purpose of constituting the Nyaya Panchayat. It is to sit, for the hearing of a suit or trial of a case, in the village where such suit or case has been instituted. It is to be presided over at each such place by one of its members. The term of office of the members of the Nyaya Panchayat expires with the term of the panchayat which elected them. The State Government has power to remove any member of the Nyaya Panchayat for reasons of misconduct in the discharge of his duties or of any disgraceful conduct or neglect, refusal or incapacity in regard to the performance of his duties as a member of the Nyaya Panchayat. The Secretary of the panchayat of the village where the sitting of the Nyaya Panchayat is held acts as the judicial clerk of the Nyaya Panchayat.

The Nyaya Panchayats constituted as aforesaid may exercise all or any of the powers mentioned in sub-section (1) and (2) of sections 73 and 75, as Government may by general or special order specify. Government may also direct the Nyaya Panchayats to exercise all or any of the judicial powers mentioned in sub-section (3) of section 73 and section 79 of the Act.

Pleaders, vakils, etc., are not permitted to appear on behalf of any party to any suit or case.

Appeals are allowed to the District Court in civil suits and to the Sessions Court in criminal cases.

For the purposes of encouraging the establishment and fostering the development of panchayats and for the supervision and control of the administration thereof, Government has constituted for every district a District Village Panchayat Mandal with the Collector as its Chairman. The Panchayat Mandal has power to call for information and to compel the panchayat to take into consideration any objection which the Panchayat Mandal has to any acts of the panchayat, either of omission or of commission, or any information which necessitates the commission of any act by the Panchayat. The Panchayat Mandal can also compel the Panchayat to reduce the number of persons maintained by a panchayat as officers or servants or the remuneration given or proposed to be given to them. In addition, the Collector has powers of suspension and prohibition in respect of the execution of any order or resolution of a panchayat which, in his opinion, is likely to cause injury or annoyance to the public or to lead to a breach of the peace. In cases of emergency, the Collector may also provide for the execution of any work or the doing of any act which a panchayat is empowered to execute or do, and the immediate execution or doing of which is, in his opinion, necessary for the health or safety of the public, and may direct that the expenses shall be forthwith paid by the panchayat.

The audit of the accounts of a panchayat is carried out by Government in the prescribed manner and a copy of the audit note is forwarded to the panchayat and the panchayat mandal within one month of the completion of the audit. If it appears to the Panchayat Mandal that a panchayat has made default in the performance of its obligatory duties, it may order the duty to be performed within a specified period, and, if the duty is not performed within that period the Panchayat Mandal can appoint some person to perform it and direct that the expense be paid by the defaulting panchayat.

The State Government also is given power to carry out at the cost of the panchayat any of the panchayat's obligatory duties when it appears to it that the Panchayat Mandal has neglected to take action. The State Government has also powers, after consultation with the Panchayat Mandal to dissolve or supersede a panchayat, if, in its opinion, the panchayat had exceeded or abused its powers or made persistent default in the performance of its obligatory duties, or persistently disobeyed any of the orders of the Collector. If a panchayat is superseded, all the powers and duties of the panchayat will be exercised and performed by a person or persons appointed by the State Government.

According to section 136 of the Act, Government has appointed a District Village Panchayats Officer in the Deputy Collector's grade for Satara district to discharge the functions prescribed under the Bombay Village Panchayats Act, 1958. He is to Act as Personal Assistant to the Collector for Village Panchayat matters and to work as Secretary of the Panchayat Mandal. Several duties have also been placed on this officer, and he is expected to do everything that is possible to popularize village local self-Government and. to make the working of Village Panchayats really effective. He has to exercise supervision over the affairs of panchayats already established in the district, tour round and explain to the panchayats the system of panchayat administration, watch the actual working of the panchayats and give them guidance if their working is not proper, and persuade women to take active interest in the affairs of panchayats. He is directed to hold annual gatherings of members of panchayats so that panchayats may become aware of the activities of one another. The programme for the collection of information relating to Village Panchayats at the taluka, district, divisional and State levels has been prescribed by Government. The procedure for the publication of the Annual reports on the working has also been laid down by Government. The information received from Taluka/Mahal/Block Officers has to be consolidated by the Collector. He writes his own descriptive report and forwards it to the Commissioner before the 31st of May every year. After the information has been submitted to the Commissioner the Collector has to publish his district report in the prescribed form in the regional language before the 15th of August.

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