In the absence of well-educated and organised local level government system, Panchayats and Samitis have remained mainly political institutions and not effective instrument of governance. Critically Discuss.

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• 73rd Amendment

  Critiques of Panchayats as political rather than governance bodies test the gap between the 73rd Amendment's design and its working.

• Balwantrai Mehta Committee

  The Panchayat Samiti at block level was the core of the Balwantrai Mehta design; this question tests how far that design delivered.