RAS question
The total number of Zila Parishads in Rajasthan:
Correct answer: (C) 33.
Rajasthan has 33 Zila Parishads, the district-level Panchayati Raj bodies headed by Zila Pramukhs.
Explanation
Rajasthan has 33 Zila Parishads. The PIB release on the Fifteenth Finance Commission's meeting with Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Institution representatives records that the state had 10,220 PRIs, made up of 9,892 Gram Panchayats, 295 Panchayat Samities and 33 Zila Parishads. This makes option C correct because a Zila Parishad is the district-level body in the Panchayati Raj structure, and the Zila Pramukh heads it. The other figures confuse the count of Zila Parishads with neither the total PRI count nor the Panchayat Samiti or Gram Panchayat figures in the official release.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) 36 is not supported by the official PRI count; the PIB release lists 33 Zila Parishads in Rajasthan.
- (B) 28 understates the official count, because the PIB release records 33 Zila Parishads.
- (D) 30 is below the official count; the official release separates Rajasthan's PRIs into 9,892 Gram Panchayats, 295 Panchayat Samities and 33 Zila Parishads.
Concept
This tests the Panchayati Raj component of Rajasthan Political and Administrative System, especially the district-level tier. It recurs in RAS because candidates are expected to distinguish Gram Panchayats, Panchayat Samities and Zila Parishads by role and count.