MAPUSA
Despite nearly all panchayats in the State going digital with their planning, only about a third of them are accepting payments online, according to the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
Out of the 191 village panchayats registered on the e-Gram Swaraj platform, 189 (99%) have uploaded their Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP). However, just 71 panchayats – 37 per cent – have enabled online payment facilities.
Data shows that through these 71 panchayats, 502 applications have been processed so far, with transactions amounting to Rs 8 crore.
Launched under the Centre’s Digital India initiative, the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project aims to bring transparency and efficiency to rural governance.
Its key component, the e-Gram Swaraj platform, facilitates planning, budgeting, accounting and monitoring of works online.
Integrated with a financial management system, the portal allows citizens and service providers to make payments in real time.
A senior official in the Directorate of Panchayat said, “The infrastructure has been made available to all panchayats. What is needed now is greater adoption at the grassroots level to ensure that citizens fully benefit from the wide range of convenient, time-saving online services.”
Officials believe that wider use of secure and reliable online payments will significantly reduce delays, curb irregularities, and ultimately strengthen overall transparency in local governance processes.
