Panchayats in India have been given the power and authority to carry…

Panchayats in India have been given the power and authority to carry out functions of self-governance. Choose their functions from the following :

(A) To make amendments in the constitution
(B) To promote schemes that will enhance social justice
(C) To create plan for the entire district
(D) To levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties and toll
(E) To prepare plans and schemes for economic development

Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

Answer & explanation

Correct answer: option 3

The correct answer is Option (3) → (B), (D), (E) only

(A) To make amendments in the constitution Incorrect. Amending the Constitution is the work of Parliament. Panchayats received their own constitutional status through such an amendment, the 73rd, but cannot amend the Constitution themselves.

(B) To promote schemes that will enhance social justice Correct. It is one of the powers the Constitution says should be delegated to the Panchayats as institutions of self-government.

(C) To create plan for the entire district Incorrect. Plans for the district as a whole are drafted by the District Planning Committee set up under the 73rd Amendment. A Panchayat prepares plans and schemes for its own area.

(D) To levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties and toll Correct. Panchayats are given the power to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls and fees, so that they have money of their own.

(E) To prepare plans and schemes for economic development Correct. Preparing plans and schemes for economic development heads the list of powers delegated to the Panchayats.

Note: This question comes from the chapter ‘The Story of Indian Democracy’ of the pre-rationalised NCERT, which NTA followed in 2023; the NCERT book (2025-26) has renamed it ‘The Constitution and Social Change’. The list of powers and responsibilities of Panchayats is still there.

NCERT (2025-26): “Powers and Responsibilities of Panchayats … According to the Constitution, Panchayats should be given powers and authority to function as institutions of self-government. It, thus, requires all state governments to revitalise local representative institutions. The following powers and responsibility were delegated to the Panchayats:

to prepare plans and schemes for economic development
to promote schemes that will enhance social justice
to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls and fees
help in the devolution of governmental responsibilities, especially that of finances to local authorities”

“…The 73rd Amendment provided a three-tier system of Panchayati Raj for all states having a population of over twenty lakhs. It became mandatory that election to these bodies be conducted every five years. It provided reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and thirty three percent seats for women. It constituted District Planning Committee to prepare drafts and develop plans for the district as a whole.”