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In e na ional Jou nal o Ad ance and Applied Resea ch
www.ijaa .co.in
ISSN – 2347-7075
Impac Fac o – 8.141
Pee Re iewed
Bi-Mon hly
Vol. 6 No. 40
Sep embe - Oc obe - 2025
The Implemen a ion and impac o PESA Ac on T ibal Sel -Go e nance
Suhas Bhikaji Vidyaga
Resea ch Schola ,
D . Babasaheb Ambedka Ma a hwada Uni e si y, Sambhaji Naga
Co esponding Au ho – D . Shaikh Shakil Rahim
DOI - 10.5281/zenodo.17663980
Abs ac :
The concep o sel -go e nance is conside ed impo an wo ldwide o he s eng hening o
democ acy. Pa icipa ion o people in he a ious poli ical sys ems and ins i u ions o he coun y,
which go e n hei li es, is a undamen al human igh o social and economic de elopmen . As a
decen alized go e nance ins i u ion, he Panchaya i Raj sys em wo ked o in ol e all s akeholde s in
he de elopmen p ocess. The Panchaya s Ex ension o Scheduled A eas (PESA) Ac , 1996 was a
long-awai ed e o m in he Panchaya sys em o he coun y.
PESA deals wi h he adi ional igh s o ibal people, including cul u al igh s, language,
iden i y, as well as igh s o all esou ces wi hin hei a ea, such as land, wa e , o es s and mine als.
I emphasizes he igh s o ibal people o main ain and s eng hen hei own ins i u ions, cul u e and
adi ions and o de elop hem in acco dance wi h hei aspi a ions and needs.
The Minis y o Panchaya i Raj ook up signi ican ini ia i es be ween 2 Oc obe 2009 and 2
Oc obe 2010, ma king he pe iod as he “Yea o G am Sabha”. T ibal communi ies cons i u e abou
8.6% o India’s popula ion (Minis y o T ibal A ai s, Go e nmen o India). The PESA Ac , 1996 is
conside ed o be he mos powe ul law among he a ious laws enac ed by he s a e o p o ide
signi ican suppo o he ibal communi y.
This pape discusses he implemen a ion and impac o he PESA Ac o 1996 wi h he help o
a ious s udies, esea ch a icles, books, jou nals and columns. This esea ch pape is based on
seconda y sou ces. This s udy ca ied ou o c i ically analyse he exis ing gaps in implemen a ion in
he s a e Panchaya Raj law and he subjec laws on he ma e s alling unde he pu iew o PESA, o
look a he implemen a ion and impac o PESA in Scheduled A eas.
Keywo ds: Sel -Go e nance, PESA Ac , Panchaya i Raj, De elopmen and T ibals.
In oduc ion:
Democ a ic decen aliza ion is a key ool o go e nance ha emphasizes people‟s
pa icipa ion in decision-making p ocesses, he eby ensu ing accoun abili y and anspa ency in he
implemen a ion o de elopmen p og ammes. Decen aliza ion is conside ed o be he p ocess o
s eng hening g ass oo s go e nance by delega ing poli ical, adminis a i e and iscal powe s o local
adminis a i e bodies h ough a legal ins i u ional amewo k. Since go e nance is a p ocess o
decision-making, decen aliza ion o adminis a ion om he na ional o he local le el enables people
o pa icipa e mo e di ec ly in he decision-making p ocess and c ea es a be e en i onmen o
g ow h and de elopmen . Decen alized adminis a ion helps people o pay mo e a en ion o
adminis a i e ma e s and educes he gap be ween people and adminis a ion. Decen alized
adminis a ion has been en isioned as a ool o local go e nmen o p omo e de elopmen
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Suhas Bhikaji Vidyaga
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p og ammes in u al a eas. To s eng hen u al local sel -go e nmen ins i u ions, he Go e nmen o
India has made p o isions unde he 73 d Cons i u ional Amendmen Ac o 1992 and he Panchaya s
(Ex ension o Scheduled A eas) Ac o 1996. A e he implemen a ion o hese wo impo an ac s,
democ a ic decen aliza ion has aken a new shape. Acco ding o A icle 46 o he Cons i u ion, he
S a e shall ake special ca e o p omo e he educa ional and economic in e es s o he weake sec ions
o socie y, pa icula ly he Scheduled Cas es and Scheduled T ibes communi ies, and shall p o ec
hem om all ype o social injus ice and exploi a ion. And he 5 h and he 6 h Schedule special
p o isions by delinea ing special adminis a i e s uc u e o ibal schedule a ea de elopmen .
Howe e , despi e hese p o isions, he Scheduled T ibes a e s ill conside ed as socially and
economically backwa d and hese a ising many ques ions ela ed o he ailu e o ibal de elopmen
p og ammes in India.
The cons i u ion o India A icles 15,16, 19(5), 23, 29, 46, 164, 343(M), 243(ZC), 244 and
also in 275, 330, 332, 334, 335, 338-A, 339, 342,366(25) con ained commands p o ec ion o
scheduled ibes o hei iden i y and igh s h ough a ious p o isions. besides, The Fi h and The
Six h Schedules appended o he Cons i u ion. PESA con ains in i sel he e hos and manda es o wo
ema kable cons i u ional p o isions i.e. a icles 243 and 244. So, in his con ex , he Panchaya
(Ex ension o he Scheduled A ea) Ac – PESA has p o ided a democ a ic model o go e nance
which is mo e pa icipa o y, mo e accoun able and p o ides be e adminis a ion in ibal a eas.
Go e nmen o India has de ined ce ain schedules a eas on he basis o hei especial
cha ac e is ics like- They a e o ally dependen upon wa e , Fo es and land (Jal, Jungle and Jameen)
hese a e hei iden i y and li elihood sou ces., esiding in a u al a eas and wo shiping na u e, and
hese a eas a e ich in na u al esou ces, cul u al adi ions and a p eponde ance o he ibal
popula ion. These a eas a e de ined in he Fi h Schedule o he Cons i u ion on he basis o hei
popula ion, ibal cul u e, cus oms, and connec ion wi h na u e. Thei dis inc i e cul u e closely linked
o na u e.
Objec i es o he S udy:
The s udy will be ca ied ou o ul il he ollowing objec i es: To unde s and he
Implemen a ion o PESA Ac and i s impac on T ibal Sel -Go e nance. Link be ween he
decen alised sel -go e ning ins i u ions and hei con ibu ion owa ds he p ocess o he socio-
economic de elopmen s o he scheduled ibe‟s a ea. The s udy also unde s ands he na u e and
ex en o implemen a ion o he PESA Ac , and how he p ocess o implemen a ion o his Ac has
been led he way owa ds he change o go e nance sys em (s uc u e and unc ion) in he ibal a eas.
Sou ces o Da a:
The da a collec ion p ocess will depend on seconda y da a bases like books, jou nals, s a e
and dis ic plan documen s, go e nmen publica ions, census epo s, economic su ey epo s,
dis ic and s a e human de elopmen epo s, annual epo s o a ious depa men s, epo s/ eco ds
o dis ic adminis a ion, block adminis a ion and PRIs.
Re iew o Li e a u e:
A e he a i al o he B i ish in India, a new e a began in he unc ioning o adi ional u al
sel -go e nmen wi h he es ablishmen o B i ish adminis a ion. The adi ional local sel -
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Suhas Bhikaji Vidyaga
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go e nmen sys em o he s a e began o decline. Th oughou his pe iod o B i ish ule, he Scheduled
A eas o Odisha we e p o ec ed as “Pa ially Excluded A eas” unde he p o isions o he
Go e nmen o India Ac , 1935. In addi ion o his Ac , he Go e nmen o India Ac s o 1919
(Mon ague-Chelms o d Amendmen s) and 1929 we e passed o gi e mo e powe s o he local
go e nmen s in he s a e. T ibal communi ies we e among he i s o oppose he B i ish colonial
policy o occupa ion du ing he Indian eedom s uggle. S ill, ibal communi ies in India ace many
o ms o opp ession and p oblems ega ding social jus ice. E en a e he B i ish le , he Indian
go e nmen main ained he same ha sh laws ega ding he ibals and con inued he colonial policies.
The ole, s uggle and agi a ion o o ganiza ions like he Indian People's Mo emen , Na ional F on
o T ibal Sel -Rule, Adi asi Sangamam and Indigenous and T ibal People's Ini ia i e succeeded in
changing he colonial app oach and policies o he go e nmen . Rega ding Scheduled A eas “The
Cons i u ion‟s Fi h Schedule (Clause 3) s a es ha he Go e no o any s a e wi h Scheduled A eas
mus epo annually o whene e he P esiden eques s i o keep he Union Go e nmen in o med o
he adminis a ion in Scheduled A eas. The Union Go e nmen o e s di ec i es o he espec i e
S a e Go e nmen s based on his Repo o imp o ed adminis a ion o he Scheduled A eas.” (A.K.
Mondi oka, Decen alised Go e nance in T ibal India: Nego ia ing Space Be ween he S a e,
Communi y and Ci il Socie y)
Acco ding o he Mungeka Commi ee (2009) epo : “Recognizing ha he mos sensi i e
aspec o ibal li e is sel -go e nmen , he B i ish also had o adap o i . Tha is why hey adop ed he
pa h o c ea ing „Excluded A eas‟ h ough he Go e nmen o India Ac , 1919. Howe e , la e he
B i ish managed o sec e ly en e hese a eas by making some ag eemen s wi h hem and ex ending
he laws made by he B i ish o hese a eas. These a eas la e came o be called „Pa ially Excluded
A eas‟. In 1950, a e he adop ion o he Cons i u ion, all he laws o he Cen e and he espec i e
s a es we e ex ended o he „Scheduled A eas‟ (Pa ially Excluded A eas) egula ly. This ma ked a
quali a i e change in he legal sys em o he ibal a eas in he la e pe iod. The e was no place o he
ibal communi y and a sys em o sel -go e nance acco ding o hei cus oms and adi ions in he new
Indian legal sys em.”
Shi sa h (2014) no es ha in Jha khand, unde he Indian Cons i u ion, 50% quo a has been
p o ided o he Fi h Scheduled Panchaya s, bu e y ew ibals a e awa e o his policy. The e is no
clea di e ence in e ms o po e y, illi e acy and malnu i ion. The ep esen a i es ep esen ing he
communi ies in Panchaya i Raj a e no in o med abou he go e nmen p og ammes ha bene i hem.
Pandi Jawaha lal Neh u, he i s P ime Minis e o independen India, p oposed ega ding he ibal
communi y ha -
• The igh s o ibals in land and o es s should be espec ed.
• Many p ojec s should no be imposed on ibal communi ies and ibal associa ions should be
ained in adminis a ion and de elopmen wo k.
PESA (Panchaya Ex ension o Scheduled A eas) Ac , 1996:
The 73 d Cons i u ional Amendmen Ac ga e a digni ied place o he ibals in he
unc ioning o he Panchaya i Raj sys em. Howe e , i did no succeed in making he ibal
communi ies he sole mas e s o hei socio-poli ical des iny in hei homeland. To add ess he
p oblems ha we e no iced a e i s implemen a ion, he Go e nmen o India appoin ed a poli ical
commi ee unde he chai manship o Dilip Singh Bhu ia. This commi ee sugges ed sui able and
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necessa y e o ms and changes o he ibal communi y sec o , which we e app o ed by he
Pa liamen . Thus, he Panchaya (Ex ension o Scheduled A eas) Ac o PESA Ac 1996, was enac ed
unde A icle 40 o he Cen al Ac o Panchaya i Raj in Scheduled A eas.
The 73 d Amendmen o he Cons i u ion o India in 1993 aimed o s eng hen democ a ic
decen aliza ion and ensu e people's pa icipa ion in he de elopmen p ocess. This amendmen
ecognized he need o p o ec and p ese e ibal adi ions, cul u al iden i ies, adi ional
ela ionships and esol e mino dispu es. The cul u al iden i y, cul u al adi ions and cus oms o he
ibal communi y ha e been p o ec ed and p ese ed. Howe e , in India‟s decen alized go e nance
sys em, ibals ha e no been gi en much powe o con ol esou ces, wi h he aim o empowe ing
people o e ec i e pa icipa ion in local go e nance. T ibals ha e been ma ginalized due o issues
such as land ans e , de o es a ion and displacemen .
As pe he Panchaya p o isions o Scheduled A eas, his Ac s a es ha a ibal illage in a
Scheduled A ea shall consis o a se lemen o g oup o se lemen s o a illage o g oup o illages,
comp ising a communi y and i s a ai s shall be managed in acco dance wi h adi ion and cus oms.
The p o isions o his Ac we e expanded by Pa liamen wi h some amendmen s and excep ions, a e
he Ac came in o o ce, ill 2013 he e we e en S a es wi h Fi h Scheduled A eas; Andh a P adesh,
Jha khand, Madhya P adesh, Maha ash a, Odisha, Rajas han and Telangana, Chha isga h, Guja a ,
Himachal P adesh. (Minis y o Panchaya Raj, Go e nmen o India). All hese S a es amended he
Panchaya i Raj Ac o inco po a e he PESA Ac , 1996. The e a e some ce ain isions behind his
expanded Panchaya i Raj Ac .
• Ex ending he p o isions o Pa IX o he Cons i u ion ela ing o Panchaya s o Scheduled
A eas wi h some amendmen s.
• Mains eaming he majo i y o ibal a eas by p o iding sel -go e nmen o he ibal
popula ion.
• P ese ing and p o ec ing he cus oms and adi ions o ibal communi ies.
• S eng hening democ acy by inc easing people‟s pa icipa ion in illage adminis a ion by
making he G am Sabha he cen e o all ac i i ies.
• To p o ide ibal local ep esen a i es wi h au ho i y ela ed o ibal in e es s a app op ia e
le els.
• To p e en highe le el Panchaya s o G am Sabha om assuming he powe s and au ho i y o
lowe -le el Panchaya s.
• De eloping a s ong adminis a i e amewo k acco ding o es ablished p ocedu es.
The main objec i e o his PESA Ac is o empowe he local go e nmen s in he Scheduled
A eas o manage and p ese e hei adi ional cus oms, socio- eligious p ac ices and adi ional
communi y esou ces. This enables each G am Sabha o uphold and p ese e he adi ions and
cus oms, cul u al iden i y, communi y esou ces and adi ional me hods o dispu e esolu ion o hei
people wi hou ex e nal in e e ence.
Signi icance o G am Sabha:
Acco ding o PESA, he ibal communi y in he Scheduled A eas shall be a cohe en and
uni ed body in he o m o a „G am Sabha‟. The ole o he G am Sabha is he cen e o all ac i i ies
and i is es ed wi h speci ic and ex ensi e powe s and unc ions which a e no co e ed by he main
p o isions o Pa IX o he Cons i u ion.
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Suhas Bhikaji Vidyaga
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The S a e Go e nmen s ha ing Schedule V a eas, ha e p o isions o make laws/amendmen s
ela ing o he ollowing subjec s o b ing hem in o line wi h he p o isions o he Panchaya s
(Ex ension o Schedule A eas) Ac (PESA), 1996.
Land acquisi ion
The igh o p e en aliena ion o land in scheduled a eas
G an o p ospec ing licences o mining leases o mino mine als
G an o concessions o mining mino mine als h ough auc ion
Planning and managemen o wa e esou ces
Owne ship o mino o es p oduce
Powe o egula e o p ohibi he sale, use o consump ion o in oxican s
The igh o p e en aliena ion o land in scheduled a eas
Au ho i y o manage u al ma ke s
Powe o con ol moneylending in Scheduled A eas
Technically, while he Ac e e s o he ex ension o he p o isions o Pa IX o he
Cons i u ion o he Scheduled V; Poli ically, i g an s undamen al go e nance igh s o he ibal
communi y. I ecognises hei adi ional communi y igh s o e local na u al esou ces. By adop ing
a clea ole o he communi y, i gi es b oad powe s o he G am Sabha. I no only accep s he
alidi y o “law, social, eligious p ac ices and adi ional managemen p ac ices o communi y
esou ces”, bu di ec s s a e go e nmen s no o enac any law agains hem.
Issues and Challenges:
Al hough he PESA Ac 1996 has s eng hened he s uggle o he ibal people on issues o
na u al esou ces, mega p ojec s displacemen and sel - ule, he si ua ion is in eali y sa is ac o y.
Despi e se e al es ic ions in he Fi h and Six h Schedules, ibal a eas a e being enc oached upon
h ough he law wi hou any change. In Odisha, i is seen ha c i ical issues like g an o licenses o
mines, mine als e c. ha e been gi en o Zilla Pa ishad ins ead o G am Sabha and decisions a e being
aken wi hou knowledge and consul a ion o local people. I is seen ha he junio G am Sabha/G am
Panchaya in he Scheduled A eas has been gi en e y li le powe . Mos o he schemes a e
implemen ed by he gene al Panchaya s. E o s ha e been made o empowe he g ass oo s people
bu he e is a lack o awa eness and in o ma ion abou his Ac among a la ge numbe o ibals. This
leads o igno ance abou he bene i s o he Ac and he changes ha a e being made. Di ec
pa icipa ion o ibals in he decision-making p ocess gi es eal meaning o PESA. I he powe o
G am Sabha is s eng hened, i can ac ually be said ha PESA is being implemen ed in he ue sense.
Impac on T ibal Sel -Go e nmen :
Posi i e Impac s:
Legal ecogni ion o ibal au onomy in decision-making.
S eng hened ole o G am Sabhas in managing o es s, wa e , and social issues.
Enhanced iden i y and digni y o ibal communi ies.
Resis ance ool: T ibals use PESA o challenge illegal land acquisi ions (e.g., Niyamgi i case in
Odisha whe e G am Sabhas ejec ed bauxi e mining).
Nega i e/Limi ed Impac s:
Weak implemen a ion has made he Ac symbolic in many egions.
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Con inued displacemen due o mining, dams, and indus ial p ojec s.
E osion o cus oma y igh s when s a e in e es s‟ con lic .
F agmen ed go e nance as adi ional ibal ins i u ions a e no ully in eg a ed wi h Panchaya i
Raj s uc u es.
Conclusion:
Acco ding o he 73 d Amendmen , Panchaya Raj has es ablished i sel as an impo an
componen o he democ a ic sys em o go e nance in India. The PESA Ac , 1996 is he mos
impo an law in India o he upli men o ibals and ibal a eas o mains eam hem. The
go e nmen , calling he PESA Ac his o ic, exp essed i s hope ha his law would help he ibals o
p o e hei igh s o e land, o es and wa e . Howe e , he poli ical will o implemen he p o isions
o he PESA Ac 1996 and he Fo es Righ s Ac 2006 is e y weak, which is c ea ing obs acles o
achie ing he expec a ions in he law.
Besides, non- ibals, sel -in e es ed, in conni ance wi h public o icials who a e quick o ake
ad an age o loopholes in laws, y o dep i e poo ibals o hei basic igh s. I is he need o he
ibal communi y o p o ec hei cul u al he i age and o be consis en wi h he o e all policies o he
go e nmen . Unless he go e nmen es ablishes adequa e in as uc u e, ensu es he impo ance and
bene i s o he laws o he ibals, as well as he e ec i e implemen a ion o he p o isions o he
laws, he objec i e o implemen ing PESA will con inue o be p oblema ic and he bene i s a ailable
unde i will emain a mi age o he ibals.
To p o ec he iden i y and cul u e o Scheduled Fi e a eas, Pa liamen has enac ed he Fo es
Righ s Ac , Land Acquisi ion Ac and se e al o he laws. These laws a e p ima ily o he p o ec ion
o he ibal communi y. Howe e , he PESA Ac , 1996 is conside ed o be comp ehensi e. I
empowe s local bodies like G am Sabhas o ake hei own decisions ela ed o hei cul u e, iden i y
and mino o es igh s. In eali y, a e 25 yea s o implemen a ion, he s a e go e nmen is ailing o
implemen i p ope ly, o is no making p ope ules ela ed o he law. In some cases, ibals in hese
a eas ha e app oached he Sup eme Cou agains go e nmen decisions. Bu he go e nmen igno ed
he PESA Ac wi h he help o laws like he old Coal Bea ing Ac , 1957 and allo ed land and a ious
mine al esou ces o indus ialis s wi hou aking he consen o he G am Sabhas o hose a eas.
The PESA Ac has immense po en ial o s eng hen ibal sel -go e nmen by legally
empowe ing G am Sabhas. Howe e , due o poo implemen a ion, s a e esis ance, and ex e nal
p essu es, i s impac emains limi ed. S eng hening awa eness, ensu ing s ic compliance, and
in eg a ing adi ional ibal sys ems wi h cons i u ional go e nance s uc u es a e c ucial o ealizing
he ision o ue ibal sel - ule (sel -de e mina ion wi hin he Cons i u ion). The e o e, i can be said
ha he idea o gi ing local adminis a ion o he Scheduled A eas h ough he PESA Ac , 1996, has
so a been a aud due o ine ec i e implemen a ion. The e o e, his law is s ill a om being a
eali y o he ibal communi y.
Re e ences:
1. Behu a, N.K. and Nilakan ha Panig ahi (2006), T ibals and he Indian cons i u ion, New Delhi:
Rawa Publica ions, pp.6-7.
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IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 40 ISSN – 2347-7075
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3. Mohan y, Bijoyini, Glimpses o local go e nmen s- pos amendmen scena io, Gyanajuga Publ,
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Repo s:
1. Ac i i y epo , ST & SC De elopmen and mino i ies backwa d classes wel a e Depa men ,
Go . o O issa.
2. Annual Repo , Panchaya i Raj Dep , Go . o O issa.
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