A block is an
administrative division
Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
of some
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
n countries.
Bhutan
In
Bhutan
Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...
, a block is called a
gewog. It is essentially for oil a group of villages. Gewogs are official
administrative units
Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...
of Bhutan. The country is composed of 205 gewogs.
Each gewog is headed by a ''gup'' or headman.
India
![Administrative structure of India](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Administrative_structure_of_India.svg)
Block is a district sub-division for the purpose of
rural development
Rural development is the process of improving the quality life and economic well-being of people living in rural areas, often relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas.
Rural development has traditionally centered on the exploitation of l ...
department and
Panchayati Raj
The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical menti ...
institutes. Cities have similar arrangements under the
Urban Development
Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to:
* Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas
* Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities
Urban may also refer to:
General
* Urban (name), a list of people ...
department.
Tehsil
A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...
s (also called Taluks) are common across urban and rural areas for the administration of land and revenue department to keep tract of land ownership and levy the land tax.
For planning purpose, a district is divided into four levels:
#
Tehsil
A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...
s
# Blocks
#
Gram Panchayats
Gram Panchayat () is a basic village-governing institute in Indian villages. It is a democratic structure at the grass-roots level in India. It is a political institute, acting as cabinet of the village. The Gram Sabha work as the general bod ...
#
Villages
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...
A tehsil may consist of one or more number of blocks. Blocks are usually planning & development units of a district in addition to tehsils. A block represents a compact area for which effective plans are prepared and implemented through Gram Panchayats.
For example,
Muzaffarnagar District
Muzaffarnagar district is a district of Uttar Pradesh state in northern India. It is part of Saharanpur division. The city of Muzaffarnagar is the district headquarters. This district is the part of National Capital Region.
History Medieval ...
of
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
has 9
blocks namely:
Block Development Officer
The Block Development Officer is the official in charge of a block. Block Development Officer monitor the implementation of all programmes relating to planning and development of the blocks. Coordination of development and implementation of plans in all blocks of a district is provided by a Chief Development Officer (CDO). BDO's office is the main operational wing of the government for the development administration as well as regulatory administration.
See also
*
List of community development blocks in India
In India, a Community development block (CD block) or simply Block is a sub-division of Tehsil, administratively earmarked for planning and development. The area is administered by a Block Development Officer (BDO), supported by several technic ...
References
{{Terms for types of country subdivisions
Types of administrative division
Administrative divisions of India