Community development block

In India, a community development block (CD block) or simply Block is a sub-division of District, administratively earmarked for planning and development.^[1] In tribal areas, similar sub-divisions are called tribal development blocks (TD blocks).^[2] The area is administered by a Block Development Officer (BDO), supported by several technical specialists and village-level workers.^[3] A community development block covers several gram panchayats, the local administrative units at the village level. A block is a rural subdivision and typically smaller than a tehsil. A tehsil is purely for revenue administration, whereas a block is for rural development purposes. In most states, a block is coterminous with the panchayat samiti area.^[4][5][6]

Administrative structure of India

Nomenclature

The nomenclature varies from state to state, such as common terms like "block" and others including community development block, panchayat union block, panchayat block, panchayat samiti block, development block, etc. All denote a CD Block, which is a subdivision of a district, exclusively for rural development.^[7][6][4]

History

The concept of the community development block was first suggested by Grow More Food (GMF) Enquiry Committee in 1952 to address the challenge of multiple rural development agencies working without a sense of common objectives.^[8] Based on the committee's recommendations, the community development programme was launched on a pilot basis in 1952 to provide for a substantial increase in the country's agricultural programme, and for improvements in systems of communication, in rural health and hygiene, and in rural education and also to initiate and direct a process of integrated culture change aimed at transforming the social and economic life of villagers.^[9] The community development programme was rapidly implemented. In 1956, by the end of the first five-year plan period, there were 248 blocks, covering around a fifth of the population in the country. By the end the second five-year plan period, there were 3,000 blocks covering 70 per cent of the rural population. By 1964, the entire country was covered.^[10]

Block Development Officer

A Block Development Officer (BDO) is an administrative officer in India responsible for the overall development of a Community Development Block (CD Block), a sub-division of a district. They are appointed by the state government and report to the Chief Development Officer (CDO) or District Development Commissioner or the similar position.

They typically fall under the purview of the Rural Development Department or Department of Panchayats of the respective state government. The BDO is responsible for overall supervision of all the antipoverty schemes and execution of the Developmental works.

The BDO functions as the Secretary of the Panchayat Samiti/Block Panchayat and exercises supervision and control over the extension officers and other employees of the Panchayat Samiti and the staff borne on transferred schemes.

Blocks statewise

^[11]

State	CD Block	Number of CD Blocks
Andaman and Nicobar Islands	CD Block	9
Andhra Pradesh	Mandal	668
Arunachal Pradesh	Block	129
Assam	Block	239
Bihar	Block	534
Chandigarh	Block	3
Chhattisgarh	CD Block	146
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu	CD Block	3
Delhi	CD Block	342
Goa	CD Block	12
Gujarat	CD Block	250
Haryana	Block	143
Himachal Pradesh	CD Block	88
Jammu and Kashmir	CD Block	287
Jharkhand	Block	264
Karnataka	CD Block	235
Kerala	Block	152
Ladakh	CD Block	31
Lakshadweep	CD Block	10
Madhya Pradesh	CD Block	313
Maharashtra	CD Block	352
Manipur	CD Block	70
Meghalaya	CD Block	54
Mizoram	CD Block	28
Nagaland	CD Block	74
Odisha	CD Block	314
Puducherry	CD Block	6
Punjab	CD Block	153
Rajasthan	CD Block	353
Sikkim	CD Block	33
Tamil Nadu	Taluk	388
Telangana	Mandal	594
Tripura	CD Block	58
Uttar Pradesh	CD Block	826
Uttarakhand	CD Block	95
West Bengal	CD Block	345