In a major advancement towards digitalisation in the rural areas, as many as 2.55 lakh Gram Panchayats (GP), 5,390 Block Panchayats and 481 Zilla Panchayats have submitted their development plans for 2021-22 on the Government of India’s e-GramSwaraj portal.
To transform the operations of the Panchayati Raj System, the Centre has decided to implement e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (MMP). E-GramSwaraj portal, which is simple work-based accounting software, is one of the initiatives taken under the e-Panchayat MMP. The portal enables the Panchayat in developing efficiency in operations and streamlines planning, budgeting, accounting and online funds management by e-GramSwaraj- Public Finance Management System (PFMS) Interface.
As per the government, 2.38 lakh Gram Panchayats have taken the digital route with e-GramSwaraj for accounting in fiscal 2021-22. However, of these 2.38 lakh GPs, 2.19 lakh have taken crucial steps for making payments under the PFMS while 1.81 lakh GPs have made payments online.
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In another flagship programme – BharatNet – under Digital India, the Government of India is providing broadband connectivity to Gram Panchayats. The move is among the Centre’s plans to digitise Panchayats and the functioning of other rural authorities.
