Railway
The apex institution of the three-tier Panchayati Raj system is the:
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)View answer ▾Hide ▴
Answer: Option B — Zilla Parishad
Detailed Solution
The Zilla Parishad, or District Panchayat, is the apex body of the three-tier Panchayati Raj system. It functions at the district level.
Composition of the Zilla Parishad:
- Members directly elected from territorial constituencies in the district.
- In many states, the heads of the bodies at the level below may also be members.
- Members of the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha and the state legislature from the district may be members, as provided by state law.
- Seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women.
Chief Executive Officer:
The Zilla Parishad has a Chief Executive Officer, usually an IAS officer or a senior state civil service officer, who looks after its administration.
Functions of the Zilla Parishad:
- Coordinating and supervising the work of the panchayat bodies below it in the district.
- Preparing district development plans.
- Implementing rural development and welfare schemes.
- Managing schools, health centres, rural roads and minor irrigation works, as transferred by the state.
- Advising the state government on rural development.
- Distributing funds received from the state among the lower bodies.
District Planning Committee:
Under Article 243ZD, a District Planning Committee consolidates the plans prepared by panchayats and municipalities in the district and prepares a draft development plan.
History of Panchayati Raj:
- The three-tier system was introduced in many states from the late 1950s.
- Rajasthan was the first state to introduce it, at Nagaur on 2 October 1959, inaugurated by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
Constitutional status:
- The 73rd Amendment Act, 1992 gave constitutional status to Panchayati Raj institutions.
- Article 243B provides for panchayats at three levels.
Why not the other options?
- ✗The Gram Sabha is the assembly of all voters of a village; it is the foundation, not the apex.
- ✗Nyaya Panchayats are village-level dispute-resolution bodies.
- ✗The Panchayat Samiti is not the apex body.
Quick tip
Remember: Apex body of the three-tier Panchayati Raj system = Zilla Parishad, at the district level.
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Panchayati Raj & Municipalities — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Panchayati Raj & Municipalities, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers local self-government in India: the Balwant Rai Mehta and Ashok Mehta committees, the 73rd Amendment on panchayats (Part IX and the Eleventh Schedule), the 74th Amendment on municipalities (Part IX-A and the Twelfth Schedule), and state election commissions and finance commissions. Questions commonly ask which state first adopted Panchayati Raj (Rajasthan, at Nagaur in 1959), which committee recommended the three-tier system, and what the 73rd and 74th Amendments provide, such as reservation for women of not less than one-third of seats. The Eleventh Schedule lists 29 subjects and the Twelfth lists 18. Practise the Panchayati Raj and municipalities questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.