The Odisha government, today, announced 129 awards to honour the best-performing Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in four categories with a total prize money of Rs 4 crore, aiming to bolster rural governance and encourage excellence among PRIs.
The decision, announced by the state government today, July 28, aligns with the National Panchayat Awards conferred by the Union government.
Announcing the initiative, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Minister Rabi Narayan Naik said the move is aimed at strengthening grassroots governance, enhancing livelihood opportunities, and ensuring inclusive development across the state.
The MInister stated that the awards will be distributed to the three-tier PRIs – gram panchayat, panchayat samiti (block-level), and zilla parishad (district-level) – to recognise outstanding contributions in rural development.
The PRIs will be selected based on their achievements in nine different themes, including MGNREGA, Swachhata-open defecation free, Jal Jeevan Mission, good governance, online audit, women participation, etc, the Minister said.
The awards will be presented at the state, district and block levels.
At the state-level, the best three zilla parishads will receive Rs 25 lakh as first prize while Rs 20 lakh (second) and Rs 15 lakh (third), while the top three panchayat samities and gram panchayats will get Rs 15 lakh, Rs 10 lakh and Rs 5 lakh, respectively, the minister informed.
Naik further said that the top-three gram panchayats and district panchayats will get Rs 3 lakh, Rs 2 lakh and Rs 1 lakh, respectively.
At the block-level, the best-performing panchayats will be awarded certificates, the minister added.
