NCERT Solutions Class 6 Social Science Chapter 11: Grassroots Democracy — Part 2: Local Government in Rural Areas

Answers to the Big Questions, the Think About It questions, the Let’s Explore activities and the “Questions, activities and projects” of Chapter 11, Grassroots Democracy — Part 2: Local Government in Rural Areas, in Exploring Society: India and Beyond. Many of these are discussion questions, so the answers below are model answers and ideas: use them to prepare, then add examples from your own village, town or school. Short notes: Chapter 11 notes.

The Big Questions (page 163)

1. What are Panchayati Raj institutions?

They are the bodies of local self-government in rural India. They work at three levels: the Gram Panchayat for a village (or a group of villages), the Panchayat Samiti for a block and the Zila Parishad for a district. At the base is the Gram Sabha, made up of all the adult voters of the village, which elects the Gram Panchayat.

2. What are their functions?

• taking decisions on local needs, such as water for fields and homes, village roads, the primary school and health care;
• looking after agriculture, housing, water resources, social welfare and cultural activities in their area;
• preparing development plans, which the Panchayat Samiti puts together and sends to the district or State for funds;
• making sure government schemes, such as the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana for rural roads, reach the people;
• keeping records, including land records through the Patwari, and helping to settle local issues.

3. Why are they important in governance and democracy?

• They bring governance close to the people, so local problems are dealt with locally, without going to the State or national capital.
• Every adult can take part directly in the Gram Sabha, and people also elect their own representatives, so democracy works at the grassroots.
• Seats reserved for women and special rules for disadvantaged groups make sure everyone’s needs are heard.
• Villagers can plan development that suits their own area, as Hiware Bazar did with water conservation.
• They give people, even children through Bal Panchayats, practice in democracy and responsibility.

Think About It: old maps (page 167)

The Patwari’s old maps show which land belonged to whom, where the fields, ponds, wells, paths and boundaries were, and how big the village was. They help to settle disputes over land today. Comparing them with the present shows how the village has changed: where houses have spread, which ponds or forests have disappeared, how a river has moved or where new roads have come. So they tell us about the past and help us understand the present.

Let’s Explore: a class Bal Panchayat (page 169)

• Issues the Gram Sabha might discuss: clean drinking water, a broken road or culvert, toilets in the school, garbage and plastic, street lights, a playground, the mid-day meal, and making sure every child, especially every girl, goes to school.
• Challenges: too little money, disagreements about what comes first, people not attending the meeting, and problems too big for the village alone.
• Solutions: list the problems in order of importance; collect contributions or voluntary labour (shramdaan); apply for government schemes; ask the Panchayat Samiti or Zila Parishad for help; and run awareness drives.

Think About It: the disadvantaged (page 170)

People who are poor, who face discrimination, or who live in remote places have fewer resources and often less say in decisions. If the government does not pay special attention, decisions may be taken without them and they may miss out on schools, health care and jobs. Democracy means that every person counts equally, so their needs must be heard and met. That is why there are special rules for them and seats reserved for women. (Extra: seats in Panchayats are also reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, in proportion to their population.)

Let’s Explore: the Centre and the Panchayat (page 170)

Point	Central government	Panchayat
Area	The whole country	A village, block or district
How people take part	They elect MPs, their representatives	They elect members, and every adult voter can also take part directly in the Gram Sabha
Head	Prime Minister (executive head)	Sarpanch or Pradhan

Both are elected by adult voters and both have officials to help them. They deal with different matters: the Centre with defence, foreign affairs and currency, and the Panchayat with village water, roads and schools.

A questionnaire for Panchayat members: How were you elected, and for how long? What are the biggest problems of our village? Where does the Panchayat’s money come from? What work was done this year? How often does the Gram Sabha meet, and do women and young people attend? How do government schemes reach poor families? How can children help? After the meeting, write a short report: whom you met, what you asked, what you learnt and what you would suggest.

Kautilya’s plan (pages 170–171)

In today’s language, what would we call the four categories? Following the book’s descriptions: a sangrahana, for every 10 villages, is like a sub-district headquarters today, such as a block or tehsil office; a karvatika, for every 100 villages, is like a district headquarters; a dronamukha, for every 400 villages, is like a larger regional centre (Extra: today, a division made of several districts); and a sthaniya, for every 800 villages, is like a provincial headquarters, a State capital. Yes, it is amazing: the idea of governing step by step, from groups of villages up to the province, is much like our village, block, district and State levels.

Questions, activities and projects (page 171)

1. Name the three tiers of the Panchayati Raj system and their key functions.

• Gram Panchayat (village level): closest to the people; elected by the Gram Sabha and headed by the Sarpanch; looks after the village’s needs such as water, village roads, the primary school and cleanliness, keeps records and makes the village’s development plan.
• Panchayat Samiti (block level): the link between the Gram Panchayats and the Zila Parishad; coordinates the Gram Panchayats of the block, collects their development plans and puts them together for the district or State, and helps get funds for schemes such as rural roads.
• Zila Parishad (district level): looks after the whole district; together the three tiers cover agriculture, housing, roads, water resources, education, health care, social welfare and cultural activities.

2. Write a letter to the Sarpanch about plastic bags lying on the roadside in the village.

To
The Sarpanch
Gram Panchayat, (name of your village)

Date: (date)

Subject: Plastic bags lying along the roadside

Respected Sarpanch,

I am a student of Class 6 at our village school. I wish to draw your attention to the plastic bags lying along the roadside in our village, especially near the bus stop and the market.

The bags make the village dirty. They block the drains, so water collects and mosquitoes breed. Cows and goats eat them and fall ill. Plastic does not rot, so it stays in the soil for many years.

I request the Gram Panchayat to place dustbins at the bus stop, the market and the school gate, to arrange for the waste to be collected regularly, and to discuss the problem in the next Gram Sabha so that shopkeepers and families start using cloth bags. We students would be happy to help in a cleanliness drive.

I hope the Panchayat will act soon.

Yours sincerely,
(Your name)
Class 6, (name of your school)

3. In your view, what type of person should be a Gram Panchayat member?

Someone who is honest and fair, and uses public money carefully; who knows the village and its problems and is easy to reach; who listens to everyone, including women, children, older people and poor families, without discrimination; who works well with others and keeps people informed about decisions and spending; who is willing to learn about government schemes; and who cares more about the village than about personal gain.

4. A school next to a highway: how can students cross safely?

• Options: a zebra crossing with signboards; speed breakers and ‘school ahead, go slow’ signs; a traffic warden, police volunteer or teachers to help children cross at school times; a foot over-bridge or underpass; or a gate opening onto a quieter side road.
• Institutions that can help: the Gram Panchayat can take up the matter in the Gram Sabha and write to the authorities; the Panchayat Samiti and Zila Parishad can take it to the district and State and help find funds. (Extra: national highways are looked after by the Central government’s highway authority and state highways by the State government, so the Panchayat may need to forward the request.)
• What students can do: raise it in the Bal Panchayat or Bal Sabha; write a letter to the Sarpanch signed by many students; ask parents and teachers to speak in the Gram Sabha; make road-safety posters; and meanwhile cross in groups, at one place, after looking both ways.