When is Panchayati Raj Day celebrated?

National observance days in India typically mark the anniversary of the law or event that created the institution being honoured. The Panchayati Raj system — the three-tier structure of local self-government in rural India (Gram Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti, Zila Parishad) — was granted constitutional status by the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992.

This amendment came into force on 24 April 1993. To mark that anniversary, the Government of India has observed 24 April every year since 2010 as National Panchayati Raj Day, using the occasion to review the performance of Panchayati Raj Institutions across the states.

• 26th November is Constitution Day (Samvidhan Diwas), commemorating the Constituent Assembly's adoption of the Constitution of India in 1949 — a different institution altogether.

• 2nd October is Gandhi Jayanti, the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, whose vision of Gram Swaraj inspired the idea of village self-rule but is not itself the notified Panchayati Raj Day.

• 15th June carries no recognised national observance linked to local self-government.