Karnataka - Bidar   

ZP members displeased over transfer of schemes to gram panchayats

Staff Correspondent

`People vote for us and send us here. If we cannot even give them drinking water, why should we be here,' asked a member

Bidar: Does decentralisation mean empowering gram panchayats at the cost of zilla panchayats? If the gram panchayats are made all powerful, why should there be taluk and zilla panchayats?

Discussion on these questions overshadowed all items on the agenda in the extended general body meeting of the Bidar Zilla Panchayat on Wednesday.

No resolution

Though the zilla panchayat members criticised the State Government for transferring drinking water supply schemes to gram panchayats, they failed to draft a resolution to this effect.

Neelamma Mallikarjun of the Janata Dal (Secular) raised the issue. She wanted to know why the zilla panchayat had not allotted money for drinking water supply schemes this year. Officials informed her that this responsibility was transferred to gram panchayats and the zilla panchayat had little say in this regard.

She strongly objected to the Government decision. "People vote for us and send us here. If we cannot even give them drinking water, why should we be here," she asked. Bheemanna Kolle of the BJP said that voters would be unhappy if he failed to fulfil their demand for drinking water.

Meenakshi Sangram, Padmakar Patil of the BJP, Kasturibai Bouddhe of the JD(S) and Sangeetha Patil of the Congress wanted to know if the zilla panchayat could still keep the power to supply drinking water to villages, despite the Government transferring it to gram panchayats.

Spill-over works

Deputy Commissioner and chief executive officer Munish Moudgil said that it was not possible.

He however, agreed to consult the State Government to find out if the zilla panchayat had the powers to take up incomplete and spill-over works of previous years.

President Anil Bhusare and vice-president Jyoti Charan Rathod were present.

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