LUCKNOW, June 18 -- Over 500 village panchayats in Uttar Pradesh have ceased to exist following merger of rural areas into urban local bodies or industrial townships since the last rural body elections in 2021, according to a report prepared by the state government. Based on this feedback from district magistrates, the government will soon launch a state-wide exercise to determine population and redefine geographical boundaries (delimitation) of affected village panchayats as a precursor to the general panchayat elections due in April-May next year. The delimitation exercise will follow reservation of village panchayats/posts and their wards. According to official data, 58,195 village panchayats were constituted following the 2021 general elections. Since then, 512 of them have been completely non-existent, largely due to urbanisation though 11 new village panchayats also came into being in the meantime. "This data will form the basis for a wider reorganisation exercise aimed at ensuring more efficient local governance," said a senior official from the panchayati raj department, requesting anonymity. "Many villages have been merged into urban bodies over the past few years. Ahead of the 2026 rural body polls, the government is redrawing boundaries and verifying population figures to ensure each panchayat meets the eligibility criteria," he added. On May 21, principal secretary, panchayati raj, Anil Kumar issued a government order (GO) mandating the delimitation of village panchayats asking DMs to send proposals by June 7. The necessity of delimitation, according to the GO, stemmed from the fact that the creation and expansion of urban bodies had resulted in many revenue villages being absorbed into urban areas. This shift has left several village panchayats with reduced populations -- some even falling below the required threshold of 1,000 residents -- necessitating structural changes. The GO directed that if a panchayat is left with a single revenue village that no longer qualifies independently, it will be merged with a nearby panchayat. However, if it still meets the eligibility criteria, it can be retained or reconstituted. Those partially affected panchayats that retain a population of around 1,000 will continue to function as before. The data received from DMs reveals wide district-wise variation. Deoria saw highest reduction with 64 village panchayats impacted, followed by Azamgarh (49) and Pratapgarh (46). Other reductions were recorded in Mau (26), Sant Kabir Nagar (24), and Kushinagar (23). In Lucknow, only three village panchayats went off the map. At the same time, 11 new ones are proposed in districts such as Azamgarh, Barabanki, Fatehpur, Gorakhpur, Hardoi, Pratapgarh, and Unnao. Additionally, two new revenue villages have been created in Bahraich, while Basti has seen boundary changes due to court directives. Presently, the total number of village panchayats in U.P. stands at 57,694 with Azamgarh district having the highest (1,810), followed by Jalaun (1,734), Sitapur (1,588) and Prayagraj (1,540). Officials confirmed that the objective is to ensure compliance with state's minimum population norm of 1,000 residents per gram panchayat, as mandated under existing regulations....