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The 11th Schedule, added by the 73rd Amendment, lists 29 functional items that may be devolved to Panchayats, but actual devolution of these functions depends on State legislation and political will.
- True
- False
Answer: True
11th Schedule and functional devolution: (a) 11th Schedule (73rd Amendment): Lists 29 functional items that may be devolved to Panchayats: Agriculture, land improvement, minor irrigation, rural housing, drinking water, roads, rural electrification, poverty alleviation, education, health, women/child development, social welfare, etc., (b) Constitutional framework: Article 243G empowers State Legislatures to endow Panchayats with powers/authority for these functions, but does not mandate automatic devolution, (c) Ground reality: Devolution depends on: (i) State legislation: States must enact laws devolving specific functions, funds, functionaries to Panchayats; many States have incomplete legislation, (ii) Political will: State governments may be reluctant to devolve powers, fearing loss of control, political patronage, (iii) Capacity: Panchayats need staff, resources, training to effectively perform devolved functions; capacity gaps limit effective devolution, (d) Applications: (i) Progressive States: Kerala, Karnataka have substantially devolved 11th Schedule functions to Panchayats, enabling local planning, service delivery, (ii) Lagging States: Many States have minimal devolution; Panchayats remain dependent on State departments for implementation, (iii) Sectoral variation: Some functions (e.g., MGNREGA implementation) more widely devolved than others (e.g., health, education), (e) Illustrates cooperative federalism: 11th Schedule provides menu of functions for local governance; actual devolution requires State-level legislation, political commitment, capacity building to operationalize constitutional framework.