CHENNAI: Two years have passed since the state government mandated the conduct of area and ward sabhas every three months across all urban local bodies (ULBs). However, a recent RTI response obtained by the NGO Voice of People (VoP), in which only 126 out of 663 ULBs responded, 86% reported holding meetings only between one and four times per ward over the past two years.
“Instead of consolidating responses from all ULBs under their (respective) jurisdiction, these departments redirected the RTI queries to individual ULBs, thereby evading accountability,” said VoP member Charu Govindan, a member of VoP..
Despite requesting information from all 15 zones, RTI responses were received from only zones 1, 2, and 12. Based on the population, each ward should have 4 to 10 area sabhas, meaning 16 to 40 area sabha meetings every year. The responses suggest that the rule has not been widely followed, and only six provided minutes of their meetings.
Additionally, the answers received have raised concerns about whether officials and representatives understand the difference between area and ward sabhas, as many responses listed the same numbers for area and ward sabhas, says the report.
According to regulations, area sabha meetings are scheduled quarterly - January 25, April 14, September 15, and December 10. Charu said that while officials initially assured holding area sabhas from January 1 to January 24, and a ward sabha on January 25, many ULBs are not following the practice including in the GCC.
The report suggests that merely issuing rules and orders is insufficient to ensure the effective functioning of area and ward sabhas. The TN government should mandate ULBs to hold quarterly area and ward sabha meetings as per guidelines and maintain meeting records in the public domain, similar to minutes of monthly council meetings available now. Social audits of these records should be conducted at least twice a year.
"Conducting all area sabhas within three months is challenging because of recurring public issues; like road repairs, may not be resolved in that timeframe due to the lengthy processes of estimation, approval, and resolution," a councilor told TNIE.