<Tr> <Td> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> <Li> </Li> </Ul> <P> In India, the Panchayati Raj generally refers to the system introduced by the constitutional amendment in 1992, although it is based upon the traditional panchayat system of South Asia . The modern Panchayati Raj and its Gram Panchayats are not to be confused with the extra-constitutional Khap Panchayats (or Caste Panchayats) found in northern India . The Panchayati Raj system was formalized in 1992, following a study conducted by a number of Indian committees on various ways of implementing more decentralized administration . </P> <P> Mahatma Gandhi advocated Panchayati Raj as the foundation of India's political system, as a decentralized form of government in which each village would be responsible for its own affairs . The term for such a vision was Gram Swaraj ("village self - governance"). Instead, India developed a highly centralized form of government . However, this has been moderated by the delegation of several administrative functions to the local level, empowering elected gram panchayats . There are significant differences between the traditional Panchayati Raj system, that was envisioned by Gandhi, and the system formalized in India in 1992 . </P>

When was the panchayat raj system introduced in india