Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act 1996

Subject: Polity

Context:

Recently, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act, had given more power to gram sabhas, which ensure that conversions and marriages done by “alluring” tribal women to get land notified as tribal land is stopped.

What is Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act, 1996.

The PESA Act was enacted in 1996 to provide for the extension of the provisions of Part IX of the Constitution relating to the Panchayats to the Scheduled Areas.
Part IX, comprising Articles 243-243ZT of the Constitution which contains provisions relating to municipalities and cooperative societies.

What was the objective of implementing PESA:

To extend the provisions of Part IX of the Constitution relating to the Panchayats to the Scheduled Areas with certain modifications.
To provide self-rule for the bulk of the tribal population.
To have village governance with participatory democracy and to make the Gram Sabha a nucleus of all activities.
To evolve a suitable administrative framework consistent with traditional practices.
To safeguard and preserve the traditions and customs of tribal communities.

What are the applicability of PESA:

Under the Act, Scheduled Areas are those referred to in Article 244(1), which says that the provisions of the Fifth Schedule shall apply to the Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in states other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram.
The Fifth Schedule provides for a range of special provisions for these areas.
Ten stateseAndhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Telangana have been notified in Fifth Schedule areas that cover partially or fully several districts in each of these states.

What are the power of Gram Sabha entrusted by PESA act:

To enforce prohibition or to regulate or restrict the sale and consumption of any intoxicant.
The ownership of minor forest produce lies with the gram sabha.
To prevent alienation of land in the Scheduled Areas and to take appropriate action to restore any unlawfully alienated land of a Scheduled Tribe.
To manage village markets by whatever name is called.
To exercise control over money lending to the Scheduled Tribes.
To exercise control over institutions and functionaries in all social sectors.
To control over local plans and resources for such plans including tribal sub-plans.