Ashok Mehta Committee Report and Recommendations

The committee was formed to study the declining effectiveness of the Panchayati Raj institutions (which were initially established based on the earlier Balwant Rai Mehta Committee) and to suggest measures to strengthen them.

The committee submitted its report in 1978 with 132 recommendations. The most important ones are:

• Two-Tier System: It recommended replacing the existing 3-tier system with a 2-tier system consisting of a Zila Parishad at the district level, and below it, a Mandal Panchayat (a group of villages with a population of 15,000 to 20,000).
• Political Participation: It suggested the open participation of political parties in all Panchayat elections.
• Taxation Powers: Panchayati Raj institutions should have compulsory powers of taxation to mobilize their own financial resources.
• Nyaya Panchayats: It recommended keeping Nyaya Panchayats (local village courts) separate from development Panchayats, presided over by a qualified judge.

Due to the sudden collapse of the Janata Party government at the center, the recommendations of the Ashok Mehta Committee were never implemented at the national level. However, a few states like Karnataka, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh did adopt some of its suggestions.