The Development and Panchayats Department will prepare a Panchayat Development Index (PDI) to assess the holistic development performance and progress of panchayats. Haryana Chief Secretary Sanjeev Kaushal said on Monday 

This index will also take into account socio-economic indicators to gauge the well-being and development status of the local communities within the jurisdiction of panchayats, he said.

Presiding over a meeting here to discuss the Panchayat Development Index, Kaushal emphasized the importance of data collection for 57 services across 12 departments.  Based on this data, the index will be formulated, considering social, economic parameters, and the development status of the local community.

It will encompass a range of thematic and sub-thematic indices, including electricity, water, roads, sanitation infrastructure, health and education services, institutions, economic and social indices, literacy and poverty rates, governance and administration, environmental sustainability, and more. 

Kaushal explained that the development index aims to identify disparities in rural communities, assess the progress of sustainable development goals, and form policies for the betterment of rural lives. The focus will be on fostering poverty-free and livelihood villages, developing healthy villages, establishing child-friendly panchayats, ensuring adequate water supply and promoting clean and green panchayats.

The focus will also be on creating self-reliant panchayats with essential infrastructure. To achieve these goals, State Steering Committee and District and Block Steering and Verification Committees have been constituted. These committees will oversee the preparation of quality data by grading the panchayats and formulate and review plans at the panchayat level.

This will facilitate the creation of a data report card for each Panchayat. The Panchayat-level data will be uploaded on the Panchayat Development Index portal by December 31, 2023, said the Chief Secretary.

Development and Panchayat Department Additional Chief Secretary Anil Malik said a rehearsal has been conducted to collect data from panchayats in 10 villages across the state. The data collection process for all panchayats will commence shortly, he said.

Necessary guidelines have been issued to the officials concerned, along with instructions to expedite data collection through state steering and district and block-level committees.