Page 25 - SST Class 03

India : Local

5
Self-government

Local Self-government and I

You have read about two levels of government : central government and state government.
The third level of government is local self-government. It is needed to solve the problems
that the people in villages and cities face. Thus, you have to interact with this level of

government directly. The hand-pump, tiling of streets, street lights, beautification of parks
etc., are only a few of the duties of a local self-government.

There are 727 districts in India. Each of these is divided into towns and
villages.

Local Self-government in Villages

All adult people of a village are members of the Gram Sabha . They should
be above 18 years of age. They elect members of the Gram Panchayat . Some

women are also the members of the Gram Panchayat. Its head is called
Pradhan or Headman .

The Gram Panchayat looks after the village. It performs two types of

functions : essential functions and optional functions.

Essential Functions

u The Gram Panchayat provides street lighting in the village.

u It supervises primary schools.

u It provides medical facilities to villagers.

u It provides for clean drinking water.

u It plants trees.

India : Local Self-government 25