Caught in the tangle of logistics and various government processes, rural Maharashtra continues to face difficulty accessing funds administered under the provisions of the Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas Act (PESA). Although PESA came into force in December 1996, Maharashtra enacted the PESA rules only in 2014. Its implementation on ground is yet to achieve its core value.
In Maharashtra, PESA covers 13 districts in the scheduled areas (Pune, Thane, Palghar, Ahmednagar, Nashik, Nandurbar, Dhule, Jalgaon, Nanded, Amravati, Yavatmal, Chandrapur and Gadchiroli). Under 2,895 gram panchayat (village councils) are 6,304 smaller hamlets that are PESA villages.
