The Hindu : Kerala / Kochi News : Goan team visits Ernakulam district panchayat

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, May 26, 2004

Kerala

Kerala - Kochi

Goan team visits Ernakulam district panchayat

By Our Staff Reporter

KOCHI, MAY 25. The district panchayat system of Kerala was very advanced and evolved compared to the emerging zilla panchayats of Goa, said Nelly Rodrigues, chairperson (Adhyaksha) of the South Goa zilla panchayat.

Ms. Rodrigues, who is leading a 12-member team of representatives from the South Goa zilla panchayat on a study tour of the district panchayats in the State, was speaking at an interactive session with the Ernakulam district panchayat members presided over by the president, K.B. Muhammedkutty, at Kakkanad on Tuesday.

The extent of power and funds transferred from the State to the district panchayats in Kerala was truly enormous considering that the 20-member South Goa zilla panchayat has an annual budget of just Rs. 4 crores and hardly any significant departments, according to Ms. Rodrigues. Even this amount had been raised this year from the earlier sum of Rs. 2 crores.

District panchayats in Goa had only the General Standing Committee, Finance and Accounts Committee, the Social Justice Committee and the Education and Health Committee. Only Government primary schools and health centres came under the purview of zilla panchayats. They maintained school buildings and conducted farmers' training programmes.

Giving a brief introduction to the Goan team about the projects being implemented by the Ernakulam district panchayat, Mr. Muhammedkutty said that a total of 500 cluster houses had been constructed in the district for the below-poverty-line (BPL) and Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) categories. The vice-president, John P.Mani, who described the administrative structure and power allocation of district panchayats in Kerala, pointed out how the State was way ahead of other States in power decentralisation. He explained the drafting, approval and implementation of projects at the district panchayat-level to the Goan team.

Earlier in the morning, the Goan delegates visited a few project sites of the panchayat. These included the farm run by the district panchayat at Okkal near Kalady, the soil conservation project at Karakkattuchira near Athani and the below-poverty-line (BPL) cluster housing schemes at Mallussery in Nedumbassery panchayat. District panchayat officials including the secretary, Valsamma John, and the superintendent, M.V. Sunny, accompanied them.

Ms. Rodrigues admitted that the visits to these project sites had been a revelation. ``It made us realise what district panchayats could do, given the powers and the funds,'' she said. The transfer of powers to the district panchayats in Goa was yet to be completed. Goa being a small State, there was a clash of interests between the State and district panchayats regarding the transfer of departments. The MLAs do not want to see the district panchayat members outwitting them, said Ms. Rodrigues.

She said that they were planning to submit a detailed report of the study tour to the Goa Government, demanding more powers for zilla panchayats.

However, the Ernakulam district panchayat members were in for a jolt when one of the Goan team members disclosed that they received a monthly salary of Rs. 5,000. However, Ms. Rodrigues said they would rather receive more funds than the salary. ``It is just a lollipop, for keeping us silent,'' she said.

The team will leave for Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday where they would visit the Thiruvananthapuram district panchayat.

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