President Droupadi Murmu on Monday underlined the need for the development of villages for the overall progress of the nation.

”Despite the rapid urbanisation over the past few decades, the majority of the population still lives in villages. Even those who live in cities are somehow connected to villages,” she noted while presenting the National Panchayat Awards and inaugurating the National Conference on Incentivisation of Panchayats.

The president was of the view that villagers should be able to decide what should be the model for the development of a village, and how it should be implemented. She said that Panchayats were not just a means of implementing government programmes and initiatives, but also a place to encourage new leaders, planners, policy-makers, and innovators. ”By adopting the best practices of one Panchayat in other Panchayats, we can quickly develop and make our villages prosperous,” she added.

President Murmu said there was a provision for the election of Panchayat representatives, every five years, to ensure the participation of every section of society. However, it has been observed that these elections sometimes created bitterness among the people. Keeping in mind the need to avoid any mutual discord among the villagers due to the elections, Panchayat elections have been kept separate from political parties.

She stressed that a society, in which there was mutual cooperation and trust among people, flourished more. She said that a village was an extension of the family. All community work should be done with mutual agreement as much as possible.

The president said that for the holistic development of any society, the participation of women was very important. Women should have the right to make decisions for themselves, for their families and for the welfare of society. This right could be achieved through their empowerment at the family and village levels.

She was happy to note that out of more than 31.5 lakh elected representatives of local rural bodies, 46 per cent were women. She urged women to actively participate in the work of the Gram Panchayats. She also appealed to their families to support them in these efforts.