VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has directed officials to ensure the rapid development of local bodies by effectively utilising the funds being extended by the Centre and the State government. Local bodies lagging behind in development with low per capita income should be categorised so as to extend special support to them, he said.
Chairing a meeting of the 5th State Finance Commission, along with Deputy Chief Minister (Panchayat Raj and Rural Development) K Pawan Kalyan at the State Secretariat on Wednesday, he instructed the officials to take steps to make the local bodies achieve self-reliance. Mentioning that panchayats get significant funds every year, Naidu said the creation of assets in panchayats, and development of other basic infrastructure should be closely monitored. Both the panchayats and municipalities should focus on identifying new avenues of revenue generation for self-reliance, he said.
Seeking the details of property tax collection from 2019 to 2024, the Deputy Chief Minister instructed the officials to make all tax records accessible online. The Finance Commission members revealed that the resource gap of Panchayat Raj bodies during 2025-29 stands at Rs 7,033 crore.
Panchayat power bill dues stood at Rs 5.8k crore till June ’24
At the same time, the resource gap of urban development authorities stands at Rs 2,016 crore marking a huge difference between tax revenue and collection. The power bill dues, which were not paid during the previous government to panchayats, stood at Rs 5,851.58 crore till June 2024. Though the funds sanctioned for panchayats in different forms stood at Rs 2,617 crore, majority of the amount came in the form of grants from the Finance Commission, they said.
The members informed that Rs 393.77 crore is being spent towards salaries of Panchayat Raj staff, and Rs 1,672.45 crore towards salaries of municipal employees. Fifth State Finance Commission Chairperson Ratnakumari, members Prasada Rao and Kruparao handed over the recommendations for strengthening the local bodies to the Chief Minister.