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Kuligod in Karnataka’s Belagavi district is the country’s best developed village, but more than a third of the gram panchayats ranked in the top 10 are in Andhra Pradesh, according to the findings of an ongoing Rural Development Ministry survey. With multiple panchayats assigned the same score – and thus tied at the same ranking – there are 97 panchayats in the top 10 ranks. Of these, 37 panchayats are in Andhra Pradesh while 24 are in Tamil Nadu. Villages from other States are represented only in single digits. Of the States going to the polls next month, Telengana and Madhya Pradesh have five and four panchayats in the top 10 ranks respectively. The Rural Development Ministry has done a gap analysis of more than 3.5 lakh villages, in more than 1.6 lakh panchayats under the Mission Antyodaya convergence scheme. A team of officials surveyed and scored village level facilities and amenities using parameters related to infrastructure, economic development and livelihood, irrigation facilities, health, nutrition and sanitation, women’s empowerment, and financial inclusion. While in October 2017, an initial baseline survey was carried out in 50,000 gram panchayats, this year, the exercise is expected to cover all of the country’s 2.5 lakh panchayats by the end of November. The rankings will be updated as more panchayats are included, the Ministry said. At the national level, the data shows progress in some areas and also spotlights discrepancies in respect of targets met under some other government schemes. For example, the survey reveals that more than 95% of villages have electricity available for domestic use, while the government had earlier this year claimed that 100% of villages had power connections. Similarly with regard to sanitation, the survey shows only 58% of villages — slightly more than 2 lakh of the 3.5 lakh surveyed villages — are open defecation free (ODF). However, according to the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan-Gramin, 5.13 lakh of India’s 6 lakh villages are already ODF. The survey also shows only 21% of villages having a community waste disposal system. About a quarter of all villages have more than 75% of households using clean energy, such as LPG or biogas. “Making this information available at your fingertips for every village in the country allows for greater public accountability,” said Amarjeet Sinha, Secretary, Department of Rural Development. “It also allows for more evidence-based planning at the panchayat level.”
