Panchayati Raj Institutions in Chhattisgarh
Introduction
Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs) represent the foundational architecture of grassroots democracy in India, and in Chhattisgarh they carry an exceptional weight because the state is home to a large tribal and rural population spread across geographically challenging terrain. When Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh on 1 November 2000, it inherited the Chhattisgarh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam, 1993 — originally enacted as the Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Avam Gram Swaraj Adhiniyam, 1993 — which had already been reformulated in the spirit of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992. The continuity of this statute across state formation is itself an important fact: the Adhiniyam explicitly states that it was enacted by the Madhya Pradesh Legislature in the forty-fourth year of the Republic of India, received the Governor's assent on 24 January 1994, and was first published in the Madhya Pradesh Gazette (Extraordinary) dated 26 January 1994. Even today the preamble retains these references — tested directly in CGPSC 2023 — making verbatim statutory knowledge essential for this exam.
CGPSC has asked 12 questions on this subtopic spanning the years 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, and 2024. The density is unusually high: five consecutive exam cycles have featured PRI questions. The pattern shows a decisive shift toward granular statutory knowledge — specific Article numbers of the Adhiniyam, exact tenure calculations, composition rules for each tier, nomination rights, fund provisions, and section-wise matching — rather than broad constitutional concepts. A candidate who knows only the 73rd Amendment and stops there will answer perhaps two questions correctly; mastery of the Adhiniyam itself is the distinguishing factor.
The Chhattisgarh PRI system operates across three tiers: Gram Panchayat at the village level, Janpad Panchayat at the block level, and Zila Panchayat at the district level. Overlaid on this three-tier structure is the Gram Sabha, the plenary assembly of all voters of a village, which forms the democratic bedrock beneath even the Gram Panchayat. In scheduled (tribal) areas, an additional layer of customary governance — the Gram Sabha under PESA — transforms the Gram Sabha from a consultative body into a near-sovereign local unit with veto powers over land acquisition, minor mineral leases, and liquor policy.
For examination purposes, four distinct knowledge domains must be mastered: (1) constitutional foundations in Part IX and the Eleventh Schedule; (2) provisions of the Chhattisgarh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam, 1993, at Article level; (3) PESA and Fifth Schedule provisions applicable to Chhattisgarh's tribal districts; and (4) operational dynamics — elections, reservations, devolution, finance, and State Finance Commission. This note covers all four comprehensively, with the Adhiniyam at its centre.
Because questions have appeared in formats ranging from simple factual recall to complex matching (four items from two lists) and multi-statement verification, this note deliberately teaches each provision in a way that makes both statement verification and matching formats navigable without memorizing raw lists.
Core Concepts & Foundations
The Constitutional Mandate: Part IX and the 73rd Amendment
73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992: The amendment inserted Part IX (Articles 243 to 243-O) into the Constitution, giving constitutional status to Panchayati Raj institutions for the first time. It mandated three-tier structure, regular elections, reservation of seats, devolution of powers, and creation of State Finance Commissions and State Election Commissions.
Article 243-B: Mandates a three-tier panchayat structure in every state — Gram Panchayat at the village level, Intermediate Panchayat (Janpad) at the block/taluk level, and District Panchayat (Zila Panchayat) at the district level. States with a population below 20 lakh may omit the intermediate tier, but Chhattisgarh retains all three.
Article 243-A (Gram Sabha): Defines the Gram Sabha as a body consisting of persons registered in the electoral rolls of a village. It is the primary democratic unit and may exercise such powers and functions as the state legislature by law provides.
Article 243-C: Deals with composition of panchayats. All seats must be filled by direct election. Additionally, Members of Parliament and Members of State Legislature may be members of panchayats at the appropriate level.
Article 243-D: Mandates reservation of seats for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in proportion to their population, and not less than one-third of total seats for women. States may provide reservation for Other Backward Classes.
Article 243-E: Fixes the duration of panchayats at five years. If dissolved before completion of the term, elections must be held within six months, and the new body holds office only for the remainder of the unexpired term — a provision extensively tested in CGPSC 2018.
Article 243-F: Bars persons disqualified under state laws from panchayat membership — including persons having more than two children (a ground used in several states, including original MP law applicable to CG).
Article 243-G and the Eleventh Schedule: Article 243-G authorises state legislatures to endow panchayats with powers and authority to function as institutions of self-government in respect of the 29 subjects listed in the Eleventh Schedule, which include agriculture, land improvement, minor irrigation, animal husbandry, fisheries, social forestry, primary education, health, women and child development, welfare of the weaker sections, public distribution system, and maintenance of community assets.
Article 243-H: Empowers states to authorise panchayats to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls and fees.
Article 243-I (State Finance Commission): Requires a State Finance Commission to be constituted every five years to review the financial position of panchayats and recommend the principles governing the distribution of state taxes, grants-in-aid, and other financial measures.
Article 243-K (State Election Commission): Creates a State Election Commission with a State Election Commissioner (removable only like a High Court judge) to superintend, direct, and control the preparation of electoral rolls and conduct of elections.
The Chhattisgarh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam, 1993
CG Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam, 1993: The principal state legislation governing Panchayati Raj in Chhattisgarh. Originally the MP Panchayat Raj Avam Gram Swaraj Adhiniyam, 1993, it received Governor's assent on 24 January 1994 and was published in the MP Gazette (Extraordinary) on 26 January 1994. On state formation the law was adopted by Chhattisgarh with amendments. Its Chapter XIV-A deals with Scheduled Areas under PESA.
Gram Sabha (Section/Article 6 of the Adhiniyam): All persons registered in the electoral roll of any village included in a Gram Panchayat constitute the Gram Sabha of that village. Crucially, if a Gram Panchayat has more than one village, each village has its own Gram Sabha — but the Gram Panchayat's meetings are held at the Panchayat's headquarters. This distinction — Sabha per village, Panchayat meeting at headquarters — is the most commonly tested conceptual nuance (tested in CGPSC 2018).
Gram Panchayat: The lowest tier of the three-tier structure, it covers one or more revenue villages (as notified under Article 3 of the Adhiniyam). Its executive head is the Sarpanch (elected directly by voters of the whole panchayat area), assisted by the Up-Sarpanch (elected by and from panch members). The Sarpanch is also the ex-officio chairperson of certain standing committees.
Janpad Panchayat: The intermediate/block-level body. Its elected members are called Members of the Janpad Panchayat. Its elected head is the President of Janpad Panchayat and the Vice President, both elected indirectly by the elected members from among themselves (Article 21 of the Adhiniyam — directly tested in CGPSC 2023 matching question).
Zila Panchayat: The apex tier covering the entire district. Its elected head is the Adhyaksha (President) of the Zila Panchayat. MLAs, MPs (Lok Sabha), and Rajya Sabha members enrolled as voters in a district panchayat area are ex-officio members of the Zila Panchayat, subject to specific conditions tested in CGPSC 2022.
Panchayat Fund (Article 66): Every panchayat must establish a fund called the Panchayat Fund. All sums received by the panchayat form part of this fund. This specific provision — Article 66 — was tested directly in CGPSC 2023.
Standing Committees: Each Gram Panchayat must constitute standing committees for specific subjects. The terms of members, quorum rules, decision-making procedure, and repeal provisions are governed by the Chhattisgarh Gram Panchayat (Terms of Office of Members of Standing Committee and Procedure for the Conduct of Business) Rules, 1994 — Articles 3 (terms), 9 (quorum), 11 (decisions), and 15 (repeal) being tested in a 2023 matching question.
The PESA Framework
PESA (Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996): Central legislation that extends Panchayati Raj to Fifth Schedule areas with special provisions that protect tribal customary law, community resources, and self-governance. Chhattisgarh has 5 scheduled districts (Bastar, Dantewada, Bijapur, Sukma, Narayanpur, Kondagaon, Kanker, Rajnandgaon in part, Gariaband, Mahasamund in part — the specific list may vary by notification), representing the largest contiguous tribal belt in peninsular India.
Fifth Schedule (Article 244): Provides for the administration of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes through a Governor's special responsibility and a Tribes Advisory Council. The Governor may by public notification direct that any Act of Parliament or of the State Legislature shall not apply, or shall apply with modifications, to a Scheduled Area.