Rural Local Bodies

Violence mars 1st phase of Maharashtra local polls, turnout figure awaited

Polling for the first phase of 264 municipal councils and nagar panchayats across Maharashtra on Tuesday was marred by allegations of bogus voting and violence with even supporters of ruling allies BJP, NCP and Shiv Sena coming to blows at some places, officials said. A voter turnout of 47.51 per cent was recorded till 3.30 pm with the State Election Commission (SEC) not providing the final figure till late night. An official said data is being compiled from across districts and the final voting figure will be released on Wednesday. In a related development, the Bombay High Court directed the SEC not to hold the counting of votes for the first phase of local body polls on December 3, as scheduled earlier, on the ground the "disclosure of public mood" through the results might affect the subsequent phase of the elections. The results of Tuesday's elections should be published along with the results of the December 20 elections, the HC said. In a subsequent statement, the SEC said the

Maharashtra civic polls on Dec 2: What will remain open, what will close?

Maharashtra gears up for local body elections on December 2, marking a key test of political sentiment across urban municipalities and nagar panchayats

SC issues notice to ECI on Kerala's petition seeking postponement of SIR

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the Kerala government, submitted in the court that the SIR schedule clashes directly with the state's upcoming local body elections

VVPAT not mandatory for local body polls, not feasible: EC to Bombay HC

The Maharashtra State Election Commission on Wednesday told the Bombay High Court that the use of VVPAT machines was not mandatory for local body polls, and it was also not technically feasible. The commission filed an affidavit opposing a petition filed by Congress leader Prafulla Gudadhe before the Nagpur bench of the high court, challenging its decision to not use VVPAT in the upcoming local body elections in Maharashtra. Gudadhe in his plea said the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) system was essential for a transparent election process. During the hearing on Wednesday, a bench headed by Justice Anil Kilor sought to know the reason for not using VVPAT machines especially when a Supreme Court judgment said the use of VVPAT was a must. The commission's lawyer told the court that the SC judgment applied only to the general elections, and not local body polls. VVPAT machines were not used during the 2017 municipal polls too, he pointed out. The commission in its affidav

Kerala govt asks Supreme Court to defer SIR to after local body polls

The state government sought deferment of the SIR until the ongoing process for Local Self-Government Institutions (LSGI) in the state is completed

Telangana HC upholds 50% OBC quota cap in local body polls, cites SC rules

The Telangana High Court has affirmed that the 50 per cent reservation ceiling set by the Supreme Court applies to local body polls, and any quota increase for OBCs should be within the framework of the "triple test". The Supreme Court's triple test is a framework for providing reservations for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in local body elections, requiring states to form a commission to collect data, specify the reservation proportion based on the commission's findings, and ensure the total reservation for SCs, STs, and OBCs does not exceed 50 per cent of the total seats. A detailed order copy was uploaded on the Telangana High Court website on Friday night. While issuing an interim stay against a Government Order providing 42 per cent BC reservation in local body polls on October 8, the High Court said the State Election Commission would notify the proportionate seats as open category seats and proceed with the elections. "We are, therefore, of the prima facie view that the ...

Over 70% voter turnout marked in Assam's Bodoland Territorial Council polls

Around 70.96 per cent of voters exercised their franchise till 4.30 pm on Monday in the elections to the 40-member Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), which will decide the fate of 316 candidates, officials said. The final turnout figure is awaited as people who entered polling booths before the 4 pm deadline were allowed to cast their votes, they said. There were no reports of any untoward incident from any of the five districts of Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR). BTC chief Pramod Boro exercised his franchise at Goibari in Tamulpur district, while BPF president Hagrama Mohilary cast his vote at Debargaon Higher Secondary school in Kokrajhar. Polls are being held amid tight security, though no violence took place in the run-up to the elections. The total number of voters in the five districts of Kokrajhar, Baksa, Chirang, Udalguri and Tamulpur is 26,58,153, comprising 13,23,536 males, 13,34,600 females and 17 people of other genders. There are a total of 3,359 polling stations,

Telangana govt to introduce bill ensuring 42% BC quota in local bodies

The Telangana government on Saturday announced its decision to introduce a bill in the assembly on August 31 to facilitate 42 per cent reservation to Backward Classes in local body polls by amending a legislation enacted in 2018. Briefing reporters after a meeting of the state cabinet, Backward Classes Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar termed as a "noose" the Panchayat Raj bill passed in 2018 during the previous BRS regime which caps total reservations for SCs, STs and BCs in local bodies at 50 per cent. The government had earlier issued an ordinance to amend the 2018 Act which was sent to the President by Governor Jishnu Dev Varma. Prabhakar said the proposed bill replaces the ordinance. It is a tradition and procedure to convert the ordinance into a bill when the House meets, he said. Prabhakar also said the cabinet decided to provide reservation on population basis to SCs and STs as per the 2001 census in the local bodies, while ensuring 42 per cent quota to the BCs. Congress h

Finance Commission must focus on strengthening local bodies: Raghuram Rajan

Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan noted that the previous finance commissions devolved more funds to the local bodies and urged for greater decentralisation in India

9 Nagaland industry groups announce 'indefinite biz shutdown' from May 19

At least nine out of the 17 commerce and industry associations in Nagaland have announced an "indefinite voluntary business shutdown from May 19, protesting against the state government's failure to meet their demand for representation in urban local bodies (ULBs). The decision was announced by Khekugha Muru, president of the Confederation of Nagaland Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CNCCI) on Tuesday. The associations have long been demanding nominated seats in their respective ULBs. The CNCCI had earlier declared a state-wide business shutdown on April 24 over the same issue, but called it off after talks with the Nagaland government. The districts that are most likely to be affected by the shutdown include Dimapur, Chumoukedima, Niuland, Peren, Wokha, Zunheboto, Phek, Tseminyu and Meluri, an official of one of the associations said. Muru, however, said the strike would not disrupt essential services. The shutter down is not anti-government. We are only exercising our democrat

Centre releases Rs 699 crore grants for rural local bodies in West Bengal

The Centre has released the 15th Finance Commission Grants for the Financial Year 202425 for Rural Local Bodies in West Bengal, which includes the second installment of Untied Grants of Rs 694.4 crore and the withheld portion of the first installment of Untied Grants of Rs 4.9 crore. According to the Panchayati Raj Ministry, these funds are for the 21 eligible District Panchayats, 326 eligible Block Panchayats and 3,220 eligible Gram Panchayats. The Ministry said the Untied Grants would be utilised by Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and Rural Local Bodies (RLBs) for location-specific needs under the Twenty-Nine (29) Subjects enshrined in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution, except for salaries and other establishment costs. The Tied Grants can be used for the basic services of sanitation and maintenance of ODF status, and this should include management and treatment of household waste, human excreta and fecal sludge management in particular and supply of drinking water, ...

Road to decentralisation: Rural local bodies need to be strengthened

Overall, devolution to rural local bodies increased from 39.9 per cent in 2013-14 to 43.9 per cent in 2021-22, said the govt report

Centre releases 15th Finance Commission grant for rural bodies in Karnataka

The Centre has released the first instalment of the 15th Finance Commission grants for FY 2024-25 to the rural local bodies (RLBs) in Karnataka, the Union Panchayati Raj Ministry said in a statement. The funds are meant for all the 5,949 eligible gram panchayats in the state, it added. "The Government of India through the Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Ministry of Jal Shakti recommends the release of XV-FC grants to the Rural Local Bodies which are then released by the Ministry of Finance. The allocated grants are recommended and released in two installments in a financial year," the statement said. The grants will be utilised by the RLBs for location-specific requirements under the 29 subjects enshrined in the 11th Schedule of the Constitution, except for salaries and other establishment costs, it added. The grants can be used for the basic services of (a) sanitation and maintenance of ODF status, and this should include management and treatment of household waste, and human excre

'Own-source' revenue of panchayats remains at Rs 59 per capita in 2017-22

Own Source Revenue (OSR) generation for panchayats remains low, with the income through tax collected by the rural local governance bodies on an average being just Rs 59 per capita between 2017 and 2022, according to government data. Even as the generation of OSR for panchayats has come into focus to give these rural bodies more financial autonomy, according to the data compiled by the Panchayati Raj ministry, between 2017 and 2022, only an amount of Rs 5,118.98 crore was raised as OSR by the panchayats. This comes down to Rs 59 per capita and Rs 2.27 lakh per panchayat over the five-year period for 2.25 lakh gram panchayats across the country. The total population coming under these panchayats was more than 86.95 crore in the said period. Among the states, Gujarat collected the highest amount as OSR at Rs 829.75 crore, while Kerala came second collecting Rs 802.95 crore. Andhra Pradesh, which raised Rs 791.93 crore, occupied the third position, followed by Karnataka (Rs 627.56 ...

Modest means: Time to strengthen and reimagine India's local bodies

To improve MC finances, interventions will be required at various levels. Most importantly, MCs will have to work on boosting their revenues

Local rural bodies should raise their own resources, says Arvind Panagariya

Several states do not have proper state finance commissions (SFCs) for fund distribution to urban local bodies and panchayati raj institutions

Viksit Bharat 2047 goal tough without rural India's development: CAG

Without the development of hinterland, India cannot become Viksit Bharat or a developed nation by 2047, Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) Girish Chandra Murmu said on Tuesday. Noting that decentralisation of power has not taken to the extent it should have happened, he said, gram sabha or rural bodies are yet to get its due importance in the federal structure. "Without the development of grassroots level at the local level, we cannot achieve Viksit Bharat. More than 50 per cent people live in rural area, and until their governance, their development, their administration, their resources are not augmented, we will not be able to reach (Viksit Bharat goal). As our prime minister says that if everyone take one step, we will have 1.4 billion steps... that is why Jan Bhagidari is important," he said. There are about 2,60,000 panchayats and 7,000 urban local bodies in the country. He empahsied the need for strengthening of local bodies so that efficiency of government schem

Andhra govt to release Rs 1,452 cr fund to local bodies to speed up works

Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister P Keshav on Tuesday said the government will release Rs 1,452 crore as funds to local bodies in the state to speed up works at the village and ward levels. According to directions from Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, it has been decided to release Rs 998 crore to gram (village) panchayats and Rs 454 crore to urban local bodies, he said. "Chandrababu Naidu directed that these funds be used to speed up works at the village and ward levels. The release of these funds will financially strengthen the local bodies," said the Finance Minister in a press release. Alleging that the erstwhile YSRCP government had weakened local bodies, Keshav asserted that the TDP-led government would work for the strengthening of local bodies. Further, he claimed that the YSRCP government had diverted the 15th Finance Commission funds.

Decentralising development

Reforms must be initiated to strengthen local bodies

Decentralisation: India's struggle with persistent challenges

To push the decentralisation project forward, the first step is to create and distribute information on the activities and finances of local bodies