49 gram panchayats disappear; Kerala witnessing rapid urbanisation

KOCHI: Three decades after the implementation of the Panchayati Raj Act, Kerala is metamorphosing into a state of cities, leaving behind villages.

As infrastructure facilities and income increased, the state is ongoing urbanisation at a rapid pace by converting village panchayats into municipalities and later into corporations.

Many panchayats that were special grade before 1995 are now municipalities. In 1995, there were 990 village panchayats, 55 municipalities and three corporations in the state. In 2015, the number of municipalities increased to 87 and the number of corporations to six. The number of village panchayats decreased from 990 to 941.

The number of municipalities increased by 67 per cent and the number of corporations by 100 per cent. Despite the increase in the number of wards by 17 per cent, there has been no increase in the number of gram panchayats. The status quo of block and district panchayats continues. There has also been a huge increase in the number of voters during the same period. Accordingly, the number of assembly and parliament constituencies has not increased.

Another achievement is the increase in women's representation in local government institutions with the support of the Panchayati Raj and Municipal Corporation Act. In 1995, women's representation was 33 per cent. Currently, it is more than 50 per cent. Women's representation in local government institutions increased to 50 per cent from 2010. This time, out of the total 23,612 wards/divisions, 12,037 are reserved for women.

Voters

1995—2,05,08,855

2025—2,84,30,761

Wards increased in 2025

Corporation—7

Municipality—128

Gram Panchayat—1375

Block Panchayat—187

District Panchayat—15