PESA ACT (Syllabus: GS Paper 2 - Governance)

Context: The Jharkhand government published draft rules for wide-ranging public consultation for implementing The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act - or PESA - enacted in 1996 to ensure self-governance through gram sabhas for people living in Scheduled Areas.

• The draft rules have mandated eight standing committees, including for Education and Social Justice, to be working under the gram sabha, which will have at least 50% women and a minimum of 40% people from Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities.

Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act, 1996

• The Parliament enacted a special legislation called Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) in 1996 and came into force on 24th December 1996.
• It is now applicable in the Fifth Schedule areas, which deals with the administration of the districts dominated by the tribal communities, and is in force in 10 states of the country.
• These states include Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Telangana.