Singh was inaugurating the first conference of chairpersons of District Planning Committees.

He said areas that need attention include combating of disease, eliminating malnutrition, providing safe drinking water, good quality universal education, providing people with skills and job opportunities and preserving environment.

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Singh said programmes like Rural Water Supply should be planned and implemented at the district level and medium term development plans in urban areas should be continued.

Describing local governments as 'unsung heroes' of the nation's march forward, he said though the progress on genuine empowerment of panchayats might have been 'uneven', remarkable success has been achieved in deepening democratic practice by holding regular elections to local governments.

"At one stroke, panchayat elections combined political empowerment with social empowerment," he said.

Singh said there was need to build the capacity of elected representatives in the local institutions. "We have not yet focused adequately on this," he said.

The Prime Minister said it was the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi who spearheaded moves towards evolving a national consensus on revitalising local governments.