Patna: In a significant move towards decentralised development, the Bihar government has announced that 1,069 Gram Panchayats will independently construct their own Panchayat Sarkar Bhawans—local governance centres envisioned as rural mini-secretariats. Until now, such buildings in other panchayats have been built under the supervision of state departments.
The Panchayat Sarkar Bhawans are being constructed across all 8,053 Gram Panchayats in Bihar. These structures are designed to house personnel from various government departments operating at the panchayat level, offering villagers direct access to government services. Many of these centres are already operational, hosting Right to Public Service (RTPS) counters that issue essential documents such as caste, income, and residence certificates, ration cards, and birth and death certificates—previously only accessible at block offices.
Out of the total, 2,000 buildings are being built by the Local Area Engineering Organisation (LAEO) and 2,615 by the Building Construction Department. With the latest development, 1,069 panchayats will take charge of their own construction work, for which Rs 2,481.91 crore has been allocated.
Each new centre will also include a Sudha Whole-Day Milk Parlor, a move that aims to blend administrative service delivery with local economic support. The cost of constructing these milk parlours has been pegged at Rs 24.53 crore. In total, the state will spend over Rs 2,506 crore on the construction of buildings and milk parlours in these 1,069 panchayats.
To ensure timely delivery, each panchayat will receive 5% of the approved construction cost as a mobilisation advance, to be adjusted in subsequent payments. The target is to complete the entire construction within nine months.
A district-level committee chaired by the District Magistrate will monitor the progress. It includes senior officials such as the Deputy Development Commissioner, Additional District Magistrate (Revenue), Executive Engineer (LAEO), and District Panchayati Raj Officer.
Officials say the initiative marks a transformative shift in rural governance. “The Panchayat Sarkar Bhawans are bringing government services to the doorstep of rural citizens. People no longer need to visit distant block or district offices to access welfare schemes,” said a spokesperson for the Panchayati Raj Department.
