Consider the following Committees on Panchayati Raj and arrange these in chronological order: I. Ashok Mehta Committee II. L.M. Singhvi Committee III. B.R. Mehta Committee IV. G.K.V. Rao Committee Select the correct answer from the codes given below.
- (a)I, II, III, IV
- (b)III, I, IV, II
- (c)II, I, III, IV
- (d)III, II, IV, I
Correct — B, the order is III, I, IV, II. Placing the four committees by the year each was set up: III. B.R. Mehta (Balwant Rai Mehta) Committee — appointed 1957, report submitted November 1957, which recommended the three-tier Panchayati Raj system; I. Ashok Mehta Committee — appointed 1977 (report 1978), which proposed a two-tier structure; IV. G.V.K. Rao Committee — appointed 1985 by the Planning Commission on administration for rural development; II. L.M. Singhvi Committee — appointed 1986, which recommended constitutional status for the Panchayats. 1957 → 1977 → 1985 → 1986 therefore reads III, I, IV, II, which is option (b). (The option prints 'G.K.V. Rao'; the actual body is the G.V.K. Rao Committee of 1985.)
- (a)I, II, III, IV — This puts Ashok Mehta (1977) first and B.R. Mehta (1957) third. The Balwant Rai Mehta Committee is the earliest of the four, so it must come first — this ordering is wrong.
- (c)II, I, III, IV — This starts with L.M. Singhvi (1986), the latest committee, and again wrongly places B.R. Mehta (1957) third. The chronology is reversed at both ends.
- (d)III, II, IV, I — It correctly begins with B.R. Mehta (1957) but then lists Singhvi (1986) before G.V.K. Rao (1985) and pushes Ashok Mehta (1977) to the end — the middle three are out of order.
Four committees mark the evolution of Panchayati Raj thinking in India. The Balwant Rai (B.R.) Mehta Committee (1957) gave the idea of 'democratic decentralisation' and the classic three-tier structure — Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti, Zila Parishad. The Ashok Mehta Committee (1977–78) argued for a two-tier system (Zila Parishad and Mandal Panchayat). The G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985) reviewed administrative arrangements for rural development and called the district the pivot of planning. The L.M. Singhvi Committee (1986) recommended constitutional recognition for Panchayats, which finally came with the 73rd Amendment (1992).
Chronology questions reward anchoring each name to a single year rather than ranking by fame. Fix the two extremes first: B.R. Mehta is the oldest (1957) and Singhvi the newest (1986); that alone eliminates any option not beginning with III and ending with II, leaving only (b).
- B.R. (Balwant Rai) Mehta Committee, 1957 — recommended the three-tier Panchayati Raj system
- Ashok Mehta Committee, 1977–78 — recommended a two-tier system (Zila Parishad + Mandal Panchayat)
- G.V.K. Rao Committee, 1985 — treated the district as the key unit of rural development planning
- L.M. Singhvi Committee, 1986 — recommended constitutional status for Panchayats (realised by the 73rd Amendment, 1992)
- Ranking committees by fame instead of date — B.R. Mehta (1957) is oldest, not Ashok Mehta
- Confusing the G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985) with G.K.V. Rao — the option's spelling is a printer's slip
UPSC and UPPSC ask this either as a chronological/match item on the four committees or as a single-fact question on which committee recommended a two-tier system or constitutional status.
Panchayati Raj was first introduced in India in October 1959 in
- (a) Rajasthan
- (b) Tamil Nadu
- (c) Kerala
- (d) Karnataka
Answer(a) Rajasthan
Same theme — Panchayati Raj was first inaugurated (Nagaur, Rajasthan, 2 Oct 1959) on the recommendations of the B.R. Mehta Committee, the earliest committee in this question.
With reference to the recommendations of the Ashok Mehta Committee (1977) on Panchayati Raj, which of the following statement/s is/are correct? (1) The three tier system of Panchayati Raj should be replaced by the two tier system. (2) A block should be the first point for decentralization under popular supervision below the state level. Select the correct answer using the code given below - Code -
- (a) Only 1
- (b) Both 1 and 2
- (c) Only 2
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer(a) Only 1
Same set of committees — tests the specific recommendation (two-tier system) of the Ashok Mehta Committee, which is item I here.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which committee first recommended the three-tier Panchayati Raj system in India?
- (a)Ashok Mehta Committee
- (b)Balwant Rai Mehta Committee
- (c)L.M. Singhvi Committee
- (d)G.V.K. Rao Committee
Answer(b) Balwant Rai Mehta Committee (1957) — Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti and Zila Parishad.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The recommendation to give constitutional status to Panchayati Raj Institutions is associated with the:
- (a)Balwant Rai Mehta Committee
- (b)Ashok Mehta Committee
- (c)L.M. Singhvi Committee
- (d)G.V.K. Rao Committee
Answer(c) L.M. Singhvi Committee (1986) — later realised through the 73rd Amendment, 1992.