Correct Answer - Option 4 : Balwantrai Mehta Committee
The correct answer is Balwantrai Mehta Committee.
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In December 1977, the Janata Government appointed a committee on Panchayati Raj institutions under the chairmanship of Ashoka Mehta.
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The committee submitted its report in August 1978 and made 132 recommendations to revive and strengthen the declining Panchayati Raj system in the country.
- As a result of this report, the Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and West Bengal passed new legislation.
- However, the flow of politics at the state level did not allow the institutions to develop their own political dynamics.
The mains recommendations of the Ashok Mehta Committee were:
- The 3-tier system of Panchayati Raj should be replaced by the 2-tier system: Zilla Parishad at the district level, and below it, the Mandal Panchayat consisting of a group of villages covering a population of 15000 to 20000.
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A district should be the first point for decentralization under popular supervision below the state level.
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Zila Parishad should be the executive body and made responsible for planning at the district level.
- There should be an official participation of political parties at all levels of Panchayat elections.