Why in news?
Union Minister of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj issued guidelines regarding the SVAMITVA scheme, a new initiative of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) regarding e-Gram Swaraj was also released.
What is the SVAMITVA scheme?
- SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages And Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) scheme is a new initiative of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj which aims to provide rural people with the right to document their residential properties so that they can use their property for economic purposes.
- SVAMITVA scheme is a collaborative effort of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, State Panchayati Raj Departments, State Revenue Departments and Survey of India.
- SVAMITVA scheme aims to provide an integrated property validation solution for rural India, engaging the latest Drone Surveying technology, for demarcating the inhabitant (Aabadi) land in rural areas.
- Under the SVAMITVA scheme mapping of rural housing land can be done using the latest survey methods and drones.
- The program is currently being implemented in six states – Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Aims of the SVAMITVA Scheme
- To bring financial stability to the citizens in rural India by enabling them to use their property as a financial asset for taking loans and other financial benefits.
- Creation of accurate land records for rural planning.
- Determination of property tax, which would accrue to the GPs directly in States where it is devolved or else, add to the State exchequer.
- Creation of survey infrastructure and GIS maps that can be leveraged by any department for their use.
- To support in preparation of better-quality Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) by making use of GIS maps.
- To reduce property related disputes and legal cases
Advantages of the SVAMITVA Scheme
- This scheme will help in streamlining planning and revenue collection in rural areas and ensuring clarity on property rights.
- It will help in resolving property related disputes.
- It will enable creation of better-quality Gram Panchayat Development Plans (GPDPs), leveraging the maps created under this programme.
SOP regarding e-Gram Swaraj
- Following Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) regarding e-Gram Swaraj, it will be ensured that the funds given to the panchayats are not misused and transparency can be maintained in its use.
- This SOP will help in establishing a strong financial system by integrating the Priya Soft and PFMS, the payment portals of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
- The application aims to bring in better transparency and strengthening of the e-Governance in Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) across the country through decentralized planning, progress reporting and work-based accounting.
- It will also assist in enhancing the credibility of Panchayats which would induce greater devolution of funds to PRIs. Furthermore, e-Gram Swaraj provides a platform for effective monitoring by higher authorities.
- e-Gram Swaraj will be a single platform for all planning and accounting needs of the Panchayats.
These endeavours are also congruent to that of Digital India Programme which is to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy – “Faceless, Paperless, Cashless”.
