Distressed panchayats await overdue funds
It is ironic that at a time when the Telangana government could rightfully boast of developing villages, scores of gram panchayats are facing a severe fund crunch. The top three high-achiever districts in the four-star category under the Swachh Survekshan Grameen-2023 are from the State – due in large measure to the Palle Pragathi (village development) programme the government launched. Several works such as improvement of greenery, identification of dumping yards, supply of tractors and segregation of waste are taken up under it. Over Rs 4,000 crore has been spent on the programme in the last financial year alone, the government says.
The bleak side speaks of a different story if this is the bright side. In the last few months, there have been several instances of village sarpanches doubling up as watchmen, farm workers and, in a few cases, even ending their lives. They are forced to take loans to pay contractors for development works undertaken in their respective villages. Many gram panchayats are starved of funds but are put under intense pressure to implement various works. The sarpanches, cutting across party lines, accuse the government of not releasing funds for months. If their allegations are true, the government owes anywhere between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 20 lakh to many, if not all, gram panchayats. The Congress and BJP have lost no time in charging the Chandrasekhar Rao government with diverting central funds within hours of being deposited and have called for protests.
The State government, on its part, puts the blame squarely on the shoulders of the Centre for delaying, cutting off and withholding grants. It asserts that it is releasing funds regularly for the local bodies. It claims to have released nearly Rs 10,000 crore to gram panchayats since September 2019. What exactly is happening? As allegations fly thick and fast, truth has become a casualty. It is known that the KCR government is not happy with the Centre directly depositing funds in the accounts of the panchayats, calling it a petty practice. Because, it argues, States have a better idea of how to spend money at the local level. It is a valid point. But, the moot question now is, if neither the State nor the Centre is delaying payments, how come sarpanches are becoming daily wage workers? This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed at the earliest. The blame game can wait.