The West Bengal Panchayat (Second Amendment) Bill, 2026, was approved by the West Bengal Assembly with 169 votes in favor and 13 against. Among those opposing the Bill were legislators from various parties, including the Trinamool Congress and Congress. The legislation aims to amend the West Bengal Panchayat Act, 1973, to limit the authority of elected heads in the Panchayat system.
The Bill, recently published in the Kolkata Gazette, focuses on reducing the sanction and signing powers of elected panchayat heads to enhance administrative stability and public service delivery. According to Panchayat Affairs and Rural Development Minister Dilip Ghosh, the Bill targets reducing corruption and ensuring proper utilization of funds for public services.
During the Assembly discussion, Higher Education Minister Jagannath Chattopadhyay criticized the previous panchayat system under Mamata Banerjee’s leadership, emphasizing the need for change to improve public service delivery. The new Bill intends to address issues of corruption and inefficiency in the panchayat system, shifting decision-making authority to bureaucrats for better governance.
