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Unit 2: Major Segments of Indian Society

per month. A bank loan was sanctioned for purchasing bullocks, carts, animal husbandry Notes
(purchasing buffaloes, cows, goats and pigs), basket making, purchasing carpentry tools, opening
a tailor’s shop or a tea shop or a barber’s shop or a grocer’s shop and for manufacturing activities
like soap-making and niwar-making.
The administration of the Antyodaya scheme was entrusted to collectors at the district level, and
to the Agriculture Department at the state level. The Government of Rajasthan had planned to
help about six lakh families in five years (from 1978 to 1982) under this scheme. Of the sanctioned
amount, one-third was to be given as pensions, about two-third as loans, and 4 per cent as help
(subsidy and loan) through the Khadi Boards. Under this scheme, during 3 years (1978 to 1980),
out of about two and a half lakh families identified, 83 per cent were assisted. Of the selected
families, 29 per cent were allotted land, 40 per cent were given loans, 22 per cent were given social
security benefits, and 9 per cent were provided employment and other benefits (Mehta, 1983:347).
The Government of Rajasthan, however, revived the programme in 1981. It selected 1,800 families
below the poverty line in every block for benefiting them during a period of three years. Social
security benefits and allotment were taken out of the assistance package.
Garibi Hatao and Bekari Hatao Programmes
The ‘Garibi Hatao’ slogan was given by Indira Gandhi in March 1971 at the time of the national
elections while the Bekari Hatao slogan was given by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) at
its annual session in April 1988. In fact, the Congress has been talking of ‘socialism’ since the
1950s. It declared ‘socialism’ as its main goal in its Avadi session in 1955, Bhubaneshwar session
in 1964 and Kamraj Nagar session in April 1988. But the extent to which the Congress has succeeded
in achieving this goal is indicated by the fact that more than 10 lakh people in our country live by
begging and about half a lakh people survive on donated blood.
Panchayati Raj

The failure of the community development programmes in involving people with the development
of the rural communities led to the establishment of Panchayati Raj on the recommendations of
Balwantrai Mehta Committee. The objects of the Panchayati Raj were democratisation,
decentralisation and modernisation. The panchayats were expected to tackle village problems at
the grassroots level and mobilise local manpower resources for purposes of economic and social
progress. In fact, Panchayati Raj in India has come into existence through a long process of evolution.
Its expansion may be analysed in five phases: from 1950 to 1960, from 1961 to 1964, from 1965 to
1985, from 1986 to 1992 and from 1993 to 1999.
A provision was made in the Constitution of India promulgated in January 1950 about organising
village panchayats as local self-governing units. The First Five Year Plan also emphasised in 1951-
52 promoting people’s participation in the management of rural development through local
representative institutions. Balwantrai Mehta Committee reviewing the CDPs also recommended
in 1956 the establishment of PRIs to ensure continuity in the process of improving economic and
social conditions in rural areas. The Planning Commission had already forcefully opined that
village panchayats should be strengthened and this new democratic set-up should gradually be
given the responsibility for taking over development administration. The B.R. Mehta Committee
had this plea in view while recommending organisation of three-tiered Panchayati Raj system.
The Panchayati Raj system was initially set up by three states in 1959. After 1959, a network of
PRIs went on being built up by most of the state governments. By 1964-65, the PRIs began to
function in 12 out of the then 15 states in India. Among the six union territories, only one set up
Panchayati Raj. The structure, however, differed in these states. During 1965-85, the Panchayati
Raj began to stagnate and even declined in efficacy of its role in the management of development
processes. Its credibility began to suffer a setback. Its powers and functions were reduced by the
executive orders of the government on grounds of inefficiency, corruption and factionalism in
many states. The Janata Party government in 1977 appointed Ashok Mehta Committee to inquire
into the causes of decline in the working of Panchayati Raj and suggest measures to strengthen the
PRIs. In 1978, this Committee made a number of recommendations for revitalisation of PRIs. These
included: assigning more powers to PRIs, making Zilla Parishad primary unit in PR system,

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