Panchayati Raj & the Advancement Index

India runs the world's largest experiment in grassroots democracy, with roughly 2.5 lakh Gram Panchayats and some 31 lakh elected representatives. On 29 April 2026 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj put a number on how well they perform, releasing the Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI) 2.0 for 2023-24: a report card that scored nearly every panchayat against 150 indicators drawn from the Sustainable Development Goals. A record 97% of panchayats took part, and 3,635 earned the top Front Runner band. Yet the index also lays bare the unfinished business of Indian federalism, since three decades after the 73rd Amendment created these bodies, many still lack the funds, functions and functionaries to act on what the data reveals.