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News18
17-07-2025
- Business
- News18
Panchayati raj ministry holds workshop on spatial development plan for villages
Agency: New Delhi, Jul 17 (PTI) The Panchayati Raj Ministry on Thursday said it has brought together 19 partner institutes of planning and architecture to prepare spatial development plans for 36 gram panchayats across 14 states as a pilot project. A two-day workshop in this regard, titled 'Navingram –� Re-Imagining the Village', commenced in Madhya Pradesh capital Bhopal on Thursday, the ministry said in a statement. A Gram Panchayat Spatial Development Plan (GPSDP) is a comprehensive plan that guides the physical and spatial development of a gram panchayat. It outlines how land should be used, what infrastructure should be built, and how development should be managed to achieve social and economic goals. 'Spatial development plans must be realistic, sustainable and aimed at empowering gram panchayats to become self-reliant," an official statement quoted Panchayati Raj Secretary Vivek Bharadwaj as saying while delivering the keynote address at the workshop. Bharadwaj stressed on panchayats generating their own revenue. 'We must include strategies to enhance the panchayats' own revenue generation, and ensure that village development becomes a model of self-sufficiency and innovation," he said. According to the statement, the ministry will create a valuable knowledge repository for Panchayati Raj transformation. 'The initiative reflects the evolution from traditional village development approaches to scientifically designed spatial planning methodologies that integrate modern planning principles with Panchayati Raj governance structures," it said. The workshop witnessed participation from elected representatives of Panchayati Raj Institutions from the spatial planning gram panchayats, officers from Departments of Panchayati Raj in various states, faculty and students from planning and architecture institutes, Town and Country Planning Department officials, and government agencies, the statement said. 'The workshop emphasises the critical importance of Own Sources of Revenue (OSR) generation and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) partnerships in creating financially sustainable gram panchayats that can effectively implement their spatial development plans," it said. The partner institutes will make presentations, showcasing the enhanced GPSDPs prepared for the 36 gram panchayats. The institutes will also present land use plans based on land suitability analysis, and propose physical and social infrastructure interventions envisioned for the next 7-�10 years, aligned with projected population growth in these gram panchayats. Alok Prem Nagar, Joint Secretary to the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, delivered comprehensive insights on spatial planning for rural areas and the way forward, highlighting the ministry's strategic interventions and innovative approaches. Principal Secretary in Panchayati Raj Department of Madhya Pradesh, Dipali Rastogi highlighted that Bilkisganj and Murvas gram panchayats in the state are progressing well with their comprehensive spatial planning implementation. Five more gram panchayats will adopt similar approaches with complete support from the state's Panchayati Raj Department, Rastogi said. PTI AO RUK RUK view comments First Published: July 17, 2025, 22:30 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Hindustan Times
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Working for nation's development also mark of patriotism: Panchayati Raj secretary
New Delhi, Guarding the borders is not the only act of patriotism and all those working for the nation's development are setting an example of devotion to the nation, said the secretary of the Panchayati Raj Ministry, Raj Vivek Bharadwaj, on Monday. He made the remarks while inaugurating a two-day workshop on the Panchayat Advancement Index that would measure growth at the village level. It aims at capacity building for data-based monitoring and planning at the village panchayat level to support holistic, inclusive, and sustainable development through Panchayati Raj Institutions. At the inauguration event, Bharadwaj said the index analyses over 100 indicators and gives a very comprehensive picture of overall development. "I am sure such a big effort has never been made before. With 2.5 lakh Panchayats being measured, there must be millions of data points," Bharadwaj said. "Sometimes we don't understand the value of our own contribution. Operation Sindoor has just concluded and our armies fought bravely. But there's isn't the only benchmark of patriotism." The Panchayati Raj Ministry said, "Standing at the border to guard the nation is not the only act of patriotism. All of us who are working for the development of the nation are contributing to it. We all are setting an example of our patriotism." "When you fill the correct data in PAI, when you ensure what is on the ground is reflected on the portal, you are contributing to the development of the country," he said to officials and panchayat members attending the workshop. Saurabh Garg, the Secretary of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation , said the PAI will help in getting data from the grassroots level. "It provides a very good basis for a bottom-up approach." He stressed that the index is the first of its kind, and will become a benchmark for other indicators to be developed. NITI Aayog Senior Advisor Rajib Kumar Sen said the index will help in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals . "It will provide the guidance required for a Viksit Bharat," he said. According to the Panchayati Raj Ministry, the PAI has been developed as a robust, multi-dimensional tool to assess and monitor the progress of village panchayats against nine themes aligned with the Localized Sustainable Development Goals . These themes cover areas such as poverty alleviation, health, education, water sufficiency, clean environment, infrastructure, governance, social justice, and women empowerment. While in the first phase - PAI 1.0 served as a baseline assessment tool, PAI 2.0 incorporates major enhancements based on extensive field experience and stakeholder feedback. It introduces a sharper and more focused framework by rationalising the number of indicators from 516 to 147. The refined Local Indicator Framework now emphasizes outcome-oriented, measurable indicators across nine LSDG themes, enabling village panchayats to track progress better, prioritise interventions, and enhance transparency in local governance.
