Panchayat Samiti is a local government body at the Tehsil or Taluka level in India. It works for the villages of the Tehsil or Taluka that together are called a Development Block. The Panchayat Samiti is the link between the Gram Panchayat and the district administration. The equivalent terms tehsil, tahsil, tahasil, taluka, taluk, and taluq refer to a unit of government in some countries of the Indian subcontinent. ... A taluka is an administrative division in India below a district; called tahsil/tehsil in northern India. ... Gram Panchayats are local government bodies at the village level in India. ...

Constitution

Members of the Panchayat Samiti are elected from among the elected representatives of the Block. There are seats reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, backward classes and women. In South Asias caste system, an untouchable, dalit, or achuta is a person outside of the four castes, and considered below them. ... Tribal peoples in India comprise a substantial minority of the population of India. ...

The Samiti is elected for 5 years and is headed by the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman.

Departments

There are seven departments in the Samiti:

1. General Administration
2. Finance
3. Public Works
4. Agriculture
5. Health
6. Education
7. Social Welfare
8. Gadbad smiti--59.95.84.165 07:30, 14 August 2007 (UTC)Insert non-formatted text here

There is an officer for every department. A government appointed Block Development Officer is the secretary to the Samiti and the chief of its administration.

Functions

1. Implement schemes for the development of agriculture.
2. Provide facilities for public health and education.
3. Repair roads.
4. Encourage local industries.

Sources of Income

The main source of income of the Panchayat Samiti are grants from the Zilla Parishad and the State Government.

Sources

Our Civic Life (Civics and Administration) Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and Curriculum Research, Pune