Kerala puts in motion process to measure Panchayat Development Index

The exercise assesses progress of individual panchayats in achieving Localised Sustainable Development Goals (LSDG), as proposed by the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj

Panchayat Development Index will be measured by taking into consideration achievements in nine broader indicators, including infrastructure, socio-economic, environmental sustainability and governance. (representational image) | Photo Credit: K.K. MUSTAFAH

Kerala has begun the process to measure Panchayat Development Index (PDI) of local bodies to assess the progress of individual panchayats in achieving the Localised Sustainable Development Goals (LSDG), as proposed by the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj. The index will be measured by taking into consideration achievements in nine broader indicators, including infrastructure, socio-economic, environmental sustainability and governance.

The government has now formed State, district and block-level, steering, monitoring and data validation committees for the process which involves ground-level data collection across various departments.

The PDI is aimed at aiding the panchayats in evidence-based planning in achieving better sustainable development outcomes and providing visibility for novel local initiatives. The PDI will be calculated based on data from multiple sources due to the wide range of local indicators required to cover the LSDGs. The data of gram panchayats will be subjected to rigorous validation at different levels before computation of thematic and composite PDI scores.

Josnamol S., joint director, Principal Directorate, Local Self-Government department, has been appointed as the State Level Nodal Officer for coordinating activities related to PDI in Kerala. The Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA) will be organising a State-level workshop involving all the stakeholders from the different departments and the State technical team.

Key factors

According to the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj’s official notification, the index will consider factors such as availability and quality of basic amenities such as roads, electricity, water supply, sanitation facilities, access to healthcare services, educational institutions, school enrolment levels, income levels, employment opportunities, poverty rates, gender equality, efficiency of local governance and public service delivery, measures for conservation.

The panchayats will be classified into four grades, ranging from A+ to D, for PDI scores ranging from above 90% to less than 40%.

At the national level, the index was launched earlier in 2023 on a pilot basis by gathering data from four districts in Maharashtra.