The Hindu : Other States / Rajasthan News : `Power generation should be given to panchayats'

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Friday, Oct 15, 2004

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`Power generation should be given to panchayats'

By Our Special Correspondent

JAIPUR, OCT. 14. The Rajasthan Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Kalulal Gujjar, has called upon the Centre to bring about reforms in the policies in the power sector and amend the energy laws to devolve the right of power generation and distribution on village panchayats.

This significant step would help strengthen the Panchayati Raj system at the grassroot level, Mr. Gujjar said at a national seminar on power production in New Delhi early this week. The Union Minister for Panchayati Raj, Manishankar Aiyar, inaugurated the seminar.

Mr. Gujjar welcomed the proposal for power production by the public sector units and private companies with the cooperation of village panchayats and expressed the hope that it would make the roots of Panchayati Raj stronger.

"The paucity of power is a major obstacle to the development of small and medium industries in the rural areas. If power is generated and distributed at small scale in villages, it would accelerate rural development in multifarious ways,'' Mr. Gujjar observed.

The Minister, while requesting the Centre to take steps for providing the generation, transmission and distribution rights to village panchayats, sought more resources and authority to the panchayat bodies.

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