The social welfare responsibilities of Panchayats include which of the following?
(A) Recording statistics of birth and death
(B) Making amendments to constitution
(C) Control of cattle compounds
(D) Framing rules for the state
(E) Propagate family planning
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → (A), (C), (E) only
(A) Recording statistics of birth and death Correct. Recording statistics of births and deaths is one of the social welfare responsibilities of the Panchayats.
(B) Making amendments to constitution Incorrect. Panchayats are institutions of local self-government. Changing the Constitution is done by Parliament; the 73rd Amendment, for example, was passed by Parliament to give Panchayats their constitutional status.
(C) Control of cattle compounds Correct. Control of cattle pounds, the enclosures where stray cattle are kept, is a social welfare responsibility of the Panchayats; the question calls them cattle compounds.
(D) Framing rules for the state Incorrect. A Panchayat works for its own village or area. Laws and rules for a whole state are made at the state level, not by Panchayats.
(E) Propagate family planning Correct. Propagation of family planning is listed among the Panchayats’ social welfare responsibilities, along with child welfare and maternity centres and burial grounds.
Note: The chapter ‘The Story of Indian Democracy’ of the pre-rationalised NCERT, which NTA followed in 2023, has been renamed ‘The Constitution and Social Change’ in the NCERT book (2025-26). Its section on the powers and responsibilities of Panchayats is still there.
NCERT (2025-26): “Powers and Responsibilities of Panchayats … Social welfare responsibilities of the Panchayats include the maintenance of burning and burial grounds, recording statistics of births and deaths, establishment of child welfare and maternity centres, control of cattle pounds, propagation of family planning and promotion of agricultural activities. The development activities include the construction of roads, public buildings, wells, tanks and schools. They also promote small cottage industries and take care of minor irrigation works.…” |