Panchayati Raj Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar has planned a convention of district and intermediate panchayat presidents, ostensibly to harmonise economic reforms as espoused by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and governance reforms in the form of Panchayati Raj as espoused by Mahatma Gandhi.A meeting of Core Committee of about 100 participants drawn from panchayat representatives from all states, representing each of the three levels and comprising women, SC and ST representatives, will be held on Thursday to draft the 15th Anniversary Charter on Panchayati Raj.Aiyar says the charter, to be finalised at a convention of over 6,500 district and intermediate panchayat presidents later, will be presented to UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The three-day convention here will end on April 24, the Panchayati Raj Divas.“I am deeply convinced that we cannot achieve inclusive growth except with inclusive governance. More budgetary allocations will reach village doorstep, but only Panchayati Raj would take it to the doorstep of villagers,” Aiyar told The Indian Express.“So, if we want to move from ‘India Prospering’ to ‘Indians Prospering’, the only possible route is the one shown by Mahatma Gandhi — the Panchayati Raj. In short, by seeking to marry governance reforms with economic reforms to bridge the path from Manmohan Singh to Mahatma Gandhi,” Aiyar said. He termed the convention as the “climax” of four years of Panchayati Raj under the UPA rule.In the two-day meeting of the Core Committee, starting on Thursday, Aiyar is expecting the Panchayati Raj representatives to come out with a charter indicating their aspirations and suggestions to carry further the governance reforms.Aiyar said the draft charter would then be taken to all panchayats across the country between mid-March to mid-April for their comments and suggestions. Thereafter, the draft would be presented during the April 22-24 convention for final approval. The final charter will be presented to Sonia Gandhi at the valedictory session.Sonia, who Aiyar said had agreed to participate, would also unveil to the public an independent study by IRMA on the ‘State of Panchayats’ and another by AC-Nielsen on the ‘State of Women in Panchayats’ on the Panchayati Raj Divas.
