HYDERABAD: At a time when more than eight bureaucrats are leaving for foreign trip to study Panchayat Raj system, the rights activists are wondering what Babus would do in countries which have no villages at all. The activists are also skeptical of State government’s claims of allocation of funds to local bodies in the absence of State Finance Commission.
“We have information that the State government chief advisor Rajiv Sharma and eight other senior officers are leaving for London among other countries for studying Panchayat Raj system there. Kerala has the best Panchayat Raj system. But, we do not know what officials will do in countries where there are no villages,” Forum for Good Governance (FGG) secretary M Padmanabha Reddy told Express.
Though, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao made a statement on the foreign jaunt of Babus, as usual the order to this effect was not placed on public domain. But, the FGG felt that there was no need to amend the existing Panchayat Raj act.
The FGG recently filed Public Interest Litigation (PLI) petition in the HC for constitution of the State Finance Commission (SFC). The HC directed the State government the SFC should be in place within six weeks time. “Already three week’s have been elapsed. We hope that the State government will appoint chairman and members to SFC,” Reddy said.
According to sources in the Finance department, the State government constituted the SFC and Governor issued orders immediately after Telangana’s formation. The same information was sent to the Centre for getting Central funds to the State. Later, the State failed to appoint the chairman and members to the SFC even after three-and-a-half years.“Without SFC, the State could not take any decision on allocation of State funds to the local bodies,” sources explained.
However, the rights activists have doubts about State giving funds to the local bodies too. “The State government did not give their share of money to the local bodies like seigniorage and others,” FGG secretary Reddy said. The official sources too confirmed this saying: “The State has to release `500 crore funds to the local bodies.” Recently, when State government cut power bills from Central government funds released to Panchayats, Centre objected to it.