By Arun Pratap Singh
Dehradun, 4 Dec: Despite meetings with Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and discussions with Panchayati Raj Secretary Chandresh Kumar, the issue of appointing block pramukhs and gram pradhans as administrators, akin to district panchayat presidents, has remained unresolved. The government today set up a committee under the chairmanship of Additional Secretary Yugal Kishore Pant to address this matter. Panchayati Raj Director Nidhi Yadav and Joint Secretary Himani Joshi Petwal have been nominated as members of the committee. The Committee has been asked to submit its report to the government by 9 December.
The Committee is expected to clarify the possibility of granting administrative responsibilities to block pramukhs and gram pradhans. It may be recalled that the tenure of the Three Tier Panchayat bodies in 12 out of 13 districts of Uttarakhand ended last week. After this, the government made a move to appoint government officers as administrators in the Block and Gram Panchayats, which has been strongly opposed by the outgoing Panchayat Pramukhs and the Gram Pradhans. It may be relevant to point out here that while the government has proposed to appoint government officers as administrators at the level of Gram Panchayats and the Block Panchayats (Kshetra Panchayats), it has retained the outgoing district panchayat presidents as administrators even after the end of their tenure. The differing treatment has led to dissatisfaction among Block Panchayat Pramukhs and the Gram Pradhans who have criticised the government for its “double standards’ in this regard. During a meeting with the Chief Minister, representatives of block and gram pradhan organisations highlighted the challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, citing a lack of progress in their tenure and requested an extension of their tenure by two years in view of the peculiar circumstances when they were unable to function due to the pandemic.
However, the government has claimed that the provisions of the existing Panchayati Raj Act do not provide for any extension of the tenure of the Panchayat bodies under any circumstances and therefore the appointment of the administrators is mandated till the fresh elections are held. The government has also reminded that due to many panchayat areas coming under urban areas, it is necessary to conduct survey and fresh delimitation of the panchayat areas before the elections can be held.
Now, the Panchayat chiefs are demanding that they be retained as administrators till the fresh elections are held even if the tenure of the panchayat bodies can’t be extended. The newly-formed three-member committee is expected to analyse the provisions of the Uttarakhand Panchayati Raj Act, 2016, and make suitable recommendations. A clear decision on the matter is expected after the submission of the committee’s findings.
It may be recalled that the Uttarakhand Panchayati Raj Act, 2016 governs the functioning of panchayats in the state, outlining the roles and responsibilities of panchayat members. The Act ostensibly aims to decentralise power and ensure effective local governance. However, the recent administrative appointments have sparked controversy, with block and village leaders feeling sidelined as compared to district panchayat presidents.
Meanwhile, the chief opposition party in the state, the Congress, has strongly criticised the government’s inconsistent orders regarding panchayat administration, accusing it of “double standards”. The Congress party has sought clarity and fairness in granting of administrative responsibilities across the state.
The committee’s scope includes reviewing the memorandums submitted by panchayat representatives and the directives from higher authorities. The final report will be pivotal in determining the roles of Block Pramukhs and Gram Pradhans in the administrative framework.
