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Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) | Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) | NITI Aayog
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) has released the Report of the Committee for Strengthening Service Delivery at the Grassroots, marking a transformative shift toward making Gram Panchayats (GPs) the central hub for citizen-centric governance. Building on the foundations of the Mysuru Declaration (2021), the committee—chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary of Karnataka—proposes a robust roadmap to eliminate regional disparities in service access. The report emphasizes that strengthening the GP-level service delivery architecture is a national imperative for achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047.
Expansion of Core Common Services A key recommendation of the committee is the drastic expansion of the national baseline of services to ensure uniform quality across all States and Union Territories:
From 7 to 50 Services: The committee recommends expanding the mandatory Core Common Services from the existing seven to fifty essential services. This expanded list includes birth and death certificates, caste and income certificates, mutation of land records, water supply connections, and social security pensions.
Two-Tier Service Structure: Services are categorized into Core Common Services (mandatory, time-bound, and technology-enabled) and Aspirational Services (progressive additions like trade licenses and SHG registrations that GPs can adopt as their institutional capacity grows).
Service Standards: Every core service must now have notified timelines, standardized service fees, and institutionalized Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
Digital Integration and Accountability The report mandates a “Techno-Legal” overhaul of how rural citizens interact with their local government:
Technology-Enabled Delivery: States are required to integrate digital tracking systems, automated SMS updates, and mobile applications for real-time status monitoring of applications.
Grievance Redressal: The framework institutionalizes multi-level grievance redressal pathways, moving from an administrative guarantee to a verifiable legal right.
Assessment and Incentives: A refined framework for the National Awards for e-Governance (NAeG) has been introduced to benchmark and recognize best-performing Panchayats based on timeliness, transparency, and digital enablement.
What is the “Mysuru Declaration” in the context of Indian Panchayati Raj? The Mysuru Declaration, signed in November 2021 by 20 States, was a landmark commitment to roll out a common minimum set of services across Gram Panchayats. It initially identified seven core services—including the issuance of birth, death, and residence certificates—setting the stage for the current 2026 expansion into a more comprehensive 50-service national baseline.
Policy Relevance
The committee’s report serves as a strategic roadmap for deepening democratic decentralization and improving the “Ease of Living” for over 60% of India’s population living in rural areas.
Institutionalizing Minimum Government, Maximum Governance: By standardizing 50 core services, the policy reduces bureaucratic friction and limits the scope for local-level corruption through paperless, digital-first processes.
Data-Driven Development: The integration of digital tracking and public dashboards provides NITI Aayog and MoPR with high-frequency data to identify and address regional governance gaps in real-time.
Social Inclusion: Mandatory inclusion of disability certificates and widow pensions in the core list ensures that the most vulnerable citizens have a predictable and transparent pathway to essential welfare entitlements.
Competitive Federalism: The new NAeG assessment framework (weighted 28% for technology use and 24% for timeliness) incentivizes States to rapidly modernize their local governance infrastructure to win national recognition.
Follow the full report here: Report of the Committee for Strengthening Service Delivery at the Grassroots