PNS | DEHRADUN
Following criticism over its decision to appoint district Panchayat presidents as administrators in the district Panchayats following the end of their tenure, the State government has set up a three member committee to find possibilities for a similar arrangement in the block and village Panchayats. The committee will submit its report to the secretary Panchayati Raj Chandresh Kumar before December 9.
The additional secretary Panchayati Raj department Yugal Kishore Pant, director Panchayati Raj Nidhi Yadav and joint secretary Panchayat Raj Himani Joshi are the members of the committee.
The government has set up the three member committee following the meeting of the representatives of different organisations of three tier Panchayati Raj bodies with the chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. The associations of Block Pramukhs, the block Panchayat members and the Pradesh Pradhan Sangathan had met the CM on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively. These representatives demanded that like district Panchayat presidents, the government should appoint Block Pramukhs and Pradhans as administrators in the block and village Panchayats respectively. The association of Pradhans had threatened to launch an agitation if the government failed to accept its demand. It is pertinent to mention here that the five year tenure of the Panchayat bodies in the State in all the districts except Haridwar ended in November after which the State government decided to appoint administrators in these bodies till the constitution of new bodies after Panchayat election next year.
On December 2, the State government appointed the outgoing district Panchayat presidents as administrators in the district Panchayats and it decided that the government officers will administer the block and village Panchayats. This decision irked the representatives of block and village Panchayats.
