The 73rd Amendment added Part IX and a new Eleventh Schedule of 29 subjects for the Panchayats

Background

The 73rd Amendment 1992 added a new Part IX to the constitution titled The Panchayats, covering provisions from Article 243 to 243(O), and a new Eleventh Schedule covering 29 subjects within the functions of the Panchayats. It implements article 40 of the DPSP, under which the State shall take steps to organise village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government. Part IX provides for a 3 tier Panchayat system at the village level, intermediate level and district level, but states with a population below 20 Lakh were given an option to not to have the intermediate level. Gram Sabha is a body consisting of all the persons registered in the electoral rolls relating to a village comprised within the area of Panchayat at the village level, and it is the only permanent unit in Panchayati Raj system. Seats are reserved for SCs and STs in proportion to their population at each level, and out of the total number of seats to be filled by the direct elections, 1/3rd have to be reserved for women. A clear term for 5 years has been provided for the Panchayats, and where a Panchayat is dissolved earlier the elections must take place before expiry of 6 months of the dissolution. Article 243F fixes 21 years as the minimum age to become a member of the Panchayat, and Article 243K provides for constitution of a State Election Commission in respect of the Panchayats. The provisions of part IX are not applicable to the entire states of Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram.