Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced the launch of e-Gram Swaraj and Swamitva yojana while addressing Gram Panchayats through video conferencing. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement comes on Panchayati Raj Day when the prime minister pressed for the need of accelerating the pace of development in villages across the country. Gram Swaraj aims at working to improve the village economy. A portal for the e-Gram Swaraj has also been launched by the government of India. Along with the website, an app for the same has also been developed, which can be downloaded on both Android and iOS platforms.
What is eGramSwaraj?
The term 'gram swaraj' was initially coined by Mahatama Gandhi and aims at the transformation of villages in India into a self-efficient autonomous entity where all the systems and facilities for a dignified living are available. The term was later developed by Vinoba Bhave. In general, the term 'Swaraj' signifies self-rule with a continuous effort towards independence and self-reliance. Gram Swaraj or village self-rule adheres to working towards a simple village economy and towards achieving self-sufficiency.
The organization Gram Swaraj was born to address core issues of ecological restoration, self-governance and human growth. The organization worked on an informal basis for two years and then got registered as a society in the year 1995.
e-Gram Swaraj is an initiative to help the rural poor and to uplift the villages of India
How eGramSwaraj works?
Gram Swaraj intervenes both at micro- and macro level for community-based social, socio-economic, socio-ecological and socio-cultural restructuring, reforms, and developments. It works towards helping the local communities realize the strength of the Gandhian concept of Gram Swaraj through various programmes and by cross-cutting thematic interventions.
The programs in this regard include community-based biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management, improvement of livelihoods and health security.
Other than this, the cross-cutting thematic interventions may include - institution building, traditional knowledge and culture, gender, food and nutritional security, and governance.
Where is e-Gram Swaraj concentrated?
Gram Swaraj's socio-economic and socio-ecological interventions are presently concentrated in the geographical area of Mayurbhanj district, located in Odisha, eastern part of India. The organization works predominately in forested areas of Mayurbhanj district, more particularly the Similipal Biosphere Reserve dominated by a diverse indigenous population.
e-Gram Swaraj is dedicated for the upliftment of rural areas of the country
What is the eGramSwaraj website and App?
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj has introduced the eGramSwaraj portal, which is a step towards helping in 'decentralised planning, progress reporting and work-based accounting'. Finances and Accounting, Geo-tagging of assets, Progress reporting, Gram Panchayat profiling, Action plan creation, and Activity output can be counted as the various aspects of eGramSwaraj.
On the official website of the eGramSwaraj, readers will be able to see the latest updates, which include the number of profiles created, the number of approved GPDPs (Gram Panchayat Development Plans), the physical progress completed, financial progress onboarding, and the geo-tagging initiated.
There is the progress reporting section for both physical and financial progress for the various states. Additionally, there is the Reports section that has Panchayat Profiles, Planning, Accounting and, PFMS Dashboards, and the Supporting Documents section.
Also Read | Self-reliance biggest lesson coronavirus taught us: PM Modi on Panchayati Raj Day | Key takeaways
