New Delhi, Sept. 10: Koraput MP Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka has been conferred the prestigious Sansad Ratna Award 2026 for his contribution as Chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj.
The award was presented during the 16th Sansad Ratna Awards ceremony held in New Delhi on September 9. The Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj was among four Parliamentary Committees selected for the honour this year.
Under Ulaka’s chairmanship, the committee has submitted 41 reports to Parliament during the 18th Lok Sabha, covering a wide range of issues concerning rural India, including rural employment and livelihoods, roads, Panchayati Raj institutions, land governance, tribal rights and grassroots democracy.
The committee has examined the implementation of major rural development programmes, including MGNREGA, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), rural livelihood and skilling initiatives, as well as land acquisition and rehabilitation-related matters.
It has also scrutinised the Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme (DILRMP) and the functioning and empowerment of Panchayati Raj Institutions.
A significant part of the committee’s work has focused on tribal and Scheduled Areas. Its examination of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA) emphasised the role of Gram Sabhas in community resources, land acquisition and local decision-making. The committee has also reviewed the implementation of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment and the devolution of functions, finances and functionaries to grassroots institutions.
Reacting to the honour, Ulaka expressed gratitude to the members of the committee, Lok Sabha Secretariat officials, ministry representatives and others whose collective efforts contributed to its work.
He dedicated the award to the people of Koraput, saying their trust had given him the opportunity and responsibility to represent them in Parliament.
Highlighting the importance of Parliamentary Committees, Ulaka said they have a responsibility to scrutinise government programmes, ensure accountability and help improve policy implementation at the grassroots level.
He also underlined the need to ensure that the concerns of villages, Gram Sabhas, women, farmers, workers, Adivasis and other marginalised communities are adequately reflected in policymaking.
The Sansad Ratna Awards were instituted in 2010 by the Prime Point Foundation, following a suggestion from former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, to recognise outstanding parliamentary performance based on objective data.
This year, 12 MPs and four Parliamentary Standing Committees were selected for the Sansad Ratna Awards.
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