CHAPTER 5

District Administration:
Changing Role of the
Collector

5.1 INTRODUCTION

The district is the basic territorial unit of administration in India.

dine to the Chamber's Dictionary,
district is "a subdivision of a
a
ision".
divi
It may be detined as "a sufficiently large territory with an
verall unity, govern by common historical, geographical, social and
namic conditions." The size of a district varies from State to State.
eco

In Tamil Nadu, for example, this size is large whereas in Uttar Pradesh,
it is small. The average s1ze ot a district, from the point of view of
administration, should be around 40,000 square miles.
The district, as accepted universally, is the key unit of State
Government in India at present. In fact, it has always existed as the unit
of administration throughout the long administrative history of our
country. The Mauryas, for instance, had divided their huge dominion
into provinces which were subdivided into districts known as ahors,
vishays and pradesas. During Ashok's period, pradeshikas were officers
charged with the welfare of pradeshas or districts. Similarly, under the
Guptas, their extensive kingdom was divided into provinces which were
The
again subdivided into vishays or mandalas-something like districts.
Mughal emperors, too, for running the administrative machinery
subahs which, in
smoothly, divided their vast empire into provinces or
sarkar was the
urn, were subdivided into districts or sarkars. The
the term is significant as
counterpart of the modern Indian district and
The British rulers gave
means "government in its total manifestation". administration. During
prideof place to the district as the basic unit of
the district virtually became a kind of sub-capital in
D s h period, In independent India also,
political as well as administrative sense.
administrative
the
COntinues to retain
its position as the pivot of
policies are
and5ETnmental structure in Indian States. Governmentalthe demands of
level. From this level,
nto practice at this

113
 Adminustralhonn
1 .

Government. A big
State and
the
Public

nicated
to
o p e r a t i o n
at the district B
114
in extent
c o m m u n i

c o m p l e xg o v e r n m e n t a l m a c h i n e
are
machinery
is m e a s u r e
the Sue
esg
can

local
people ntal olicies,
level
t h i s level,
this
oneprogrammes and projects. Every
and oJects.

att
a distri.
accomplishments
hments
plans,
polic
district.
The

its
governmental
is a
part ofa citizen contact
India
every
the almost
in India:
of town which
which
in
or with d i s t r i c t s

i l ladministration
age of
types districts.
v a r i o u s

of average

There
are

are
the ban districts
s e m i - u r b a n
districts where the local
districts

Rural and problem .

ms.
urban urban
1. some more
on
are are many industrial
districts
c o n c e n t r a t e s

There
a r e many
administration there
West
Bengal, belts.
and industrial

are to
Bihar the
In round local people
local people are totally
3. found
heavily districts
wnere
backward

many
and advantage.
There a r e
opportunity

kind ot
44. deprived
of any l a b e l l e d as 'hillydistricts
icts' where
districts are Ind
some
Indian
from that
of the rest
rest of
of India
5. Lastly, differs

the pattern of living

districts. the mixture of these different
ferent
constitute
districts
Indian
But most

types.

ADMINISTRATION:
ITS FUNCTIONS
DISTRICT
5.2 the management of the task of
administration implies
District within an area legally recognized as a
far it lies
Departments outside the
as
government so Government

of the State
district. Most located in the district. In some
external field services or
Secretariat have located at the
Government also has its field agencies
Union
cases, the
total of the activities
of these Departments and
district level. The sum
governmental affairs
associated with Union
other Departments
some
known as the district
constitute what is commonly
together observed: "District
administrative machinery. S.S. Khera wisely
in a district; that
administration is the total functioning of government
at
total andcomplex organization of the management of public affairs
of geographically
work, dynamic and not static in the territory
a
of
demarcated district ... District administration includes all the agencies
government, the individual officials and functionaries, public servants .
for the management of public affairs in the district, all
the institutions
all bodies corporate such as the panchayats of different kinds .. all

advisory bodies associated with the administration".

The immense functions of district administration can be classihea
into six broad categories which are: (a) regulatory, (b) developmenta, (e
functions of local bodies, (d) conducting elections, (e) emergency ai
residuary.
Ot these, regulatory
and developmental functions are the
most important functions of district
perhaps
administration. Regulatoryfuncso
 Distvict Administration:
Changing Role of the Collector 115
ho
maintenance of law and
order,
incluaation control of crime and
i n c l u d e

administration of justice.
justice. Kegulatory
aaistration including the assessment functions also cover land
administration inclu
and collection
collection ofsuch her taxes sales tax, forest and of land revenue,
as
rollectio
etc. Controlling,regulating and distributing food excise tax, income
and civil
tax,
too, comeae un
under regulatory functions of district supplies,
developmental functions, we
administration.
mean
By
ion, basically such functions like
ltural productior cooperation, animal husbandry,
anary, fisheries, and
welfare activities.like public health, education, social
welfare, etc.
nctions of local bodies
are concerned with the administration
and rural local bodies. Constitution and running of Zilla Parishadsof
urban a n d r u r .

District Boards, Municipal

rural) and Corporations and Municipalities
(urban)are the local body functions of district administration.
An election-conducting funcuon concerns the holding of elections to
dParliament, the State Legislature and local bodies.
By emergency functions, We mean the activities of district
administration during emergency situations and natural calamities like
flood, drought, etc.
The residuary functions of district administration do not consist of
executive works done that have neither been precisely defined nor is
there a specific government representative în the district to perform
such functions. The Collector, as the chief representative of the State
Government in the district, has to discharge all such duties including
issuing, renewal, suspension and
cancellation of arm licences,

enforcement of special Acts, campaigns for small savings,

duties related

to publicity and public relations, protocol

duties, etc.

ADMINISTRATION
5.3 ORGANIZATION OF DISTRICT
Commissioner had to perform
In the earlier days, the Collector/Deputy
With the introduction of local self
all six types of functions stated before.
government institutions and the gradual
setting up of technical
instead of
these functions tended to be shared by many
departments,
one. As a result, in place of unity
of commands, there emerged
district
commands. This change in
the performance of
multiplicity of since the
more and more prominent
aaministrative functions became as the Central
India Acts (1919, 1935). In fact, nowadays,
uovernment of observes, only the regulatory
Aaministration Reforms CommissionCollector and the developmental
a r e to be performed
by the enormous
size
institutions. The
are left with the panchayati raj
Ons of commands
has led to
the
tlons along with the multiplicity where district
sub-capital
kind of of
of the district as a The names

hanence are
located.

headquarters
such Department
of various technical departme
designations
of officers heading
those

partments and the

 da
n
Admmnistratron

Publsr more.
r e or less
116
State
to
State.
But a
representative
from
D e p a r t m e n t s
vary
given
below:
Designation of
the District Head
list is
Name of Department
District Agriculture Dfficer/Assistant
Director of Agriculture
1. Agriculture

Backward Classes Welfare Oficer

2. Backward Classes/ Harijan Welfare Officer
Harijan Welfare
Assistant/Deputy Registrar of Co-
3. Cooperatives operative Societies

District Education Officer/lnspector

4. Education
Schools
District Employment Officer
5. Employment
District Excise Officer/Superintenden
6. Excise of Excise
Divisional/District Forest Officer
7. Forest District Health Officer
8. Health and
Family Planning
District Industries Officer/Assistant
9 Industries
Director of Industries
Superintendent of Jails
10. Jails
District and Sessions Judge
11. Judiciary
12. Labour
Assistant Labour Commissioner/
District Labour Officer
13. Medicine District Medical Officer/Civil Surgeon
14. Panchayats/Panchayats District Panchayat Officer
and Social Services
15. Planning District Planning Officer
16. Police Superintendent of Police
17. Publicity/Information District Publicity Officer/Assistant
Director of Publicity
18. Public Works Executive Engineer
19. Registration Collector
20. Revenue and General Collector
Administration
21. Sales Tax
District Sales Tax Officer
22. Statistics
District Statistics Officer
23.
Treasury and Accounts District Accounts Officer/District

24. Veterinary and Treasury Officer

Assistant Director of Veterinary
Animal Husbandry
Services/District Veterinary Officer
 Distrnct Administration: Changing Role
of the CollectoT 1117

5.4 COLLECTOR: EVOLUTION OF HIS ROLE IN

DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION
Thecollector or Deputy Commissioner or District Officer is the linchpin
district administration.
He is at the of the district. He is known
as Collector in some of the States like apex
and Deputy Commissioner in other States Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh
like Punjah and Haryana. In
ome other States like West Bengal, he is termed
well, Being the head of district administration, theDistrict
we
Magistrate as
Collector occupies a
unique position in the entire administrative of India. The
institution of Collector came into existence duringsystem
the days of the East
India Company and then, it has enjoyed a place of pride in the
since
district. Under the British rule, the district was the basis of
administration and the Collector, as the head of the district, played a key
role in the administrative set-up. On the framework of this fundamental
administrative unit, civil, criminal and political jurisdictions were built.
The pattern of district administration in India is based on the ancient
Indian system of territorial organization which provided various
areawise levels of administration like divisional, subdivisional, etc.3
Mughal rulers also followed the system of territorial administration,
when the British East India Company appeared on the scene. The office
of the "Collector of Revenue" was created under the East India Company
in 1772.4
In 1787, the administration of revenue, civil justice and magistracy
was united in the office of the District Collector. Thus, he became an
extremely powerful civil servant running the executive machinery in the
district. After the 1857 revolt, the Bengal system of district
administration was modified and the pattern of integrated field
administration, adopted in other parts of the nation, was also introduced
in Bengal. The District Collector of this period became the symbol of
imperial rule. In fact, the Collector was not merely the representative
of the government. He was rather the government or sarkar himself.
Paternalism and authoritarianism were the two characteristic features
of the system of collector raj. Various factors like the growth of rapid
means of communication, the spread of education, the freedom of the
press, the introduction of local self governmental institutions, etc. had
an impact upon the authority and power of the Collector.
The introduction of provincial autonomy in April, 1937 gave birth to
an enlarged sphere of activity of the Collector. Till 1937, the Collector
concentrated on public order, impartial administration of justice, prompt
collection of revenue and the correct maintenance of land records. But
by 1939, his sphere of activities included rural development, cooperative
movement and the village panchayats. The Second World War (1939-
1945) added a new dimension to the functions and duties of the District
Collector and imposed some additional responsibilities upon his
shoulders. After independence in 1947, several newer problems were
 in Indu
Administration

118
Public additional
ns tfell principally,
problems

such Collector
burden
of all of the
on
and the
shoulders

comm munity evelon

evelopment
communit.
created o v e r - b u r d e n e d

f the
of the
thea
i n t r o d u c t i o n

the already the raj and

and the accepta
tance of
.hce
duties of the
p a n c h a y a t i

1947,
of the the
the
radically changed
Since
changed
i n t r o d u c t i o n

p r o g r a m m e ,
State"
have
order and the llection
the
of
"welfare
or and the ddevelopmer
law
ofof
concept
the maintenance shifted to the
Collector.
From has
Do ent
now

emphasis eradication of
revenue.
the major a n d the y. Under
keo
r e s o u r c e s

material Collector cannot attord to

to keep a
human and the
human
these
altered
circumstances,

and 18 rather
primarily expected
ted to work with
the people ector now has to spend a lot of time
distance from
and for the
people. A
the socio-cult me
the people of the people. To the soci0-cultural
life of
listening to the grievances
contribute a lot. Thus, he is ne
no longer the
in to
he is expected case under the
under the British
the district, as was the
ears" of government
sole "eves and instrument of uting governmental poliocies,
executing governmen

largely by the ruling nol,

acts as an
rule. He formulated
and projects
programmes, plans responsibilities and a
the State level. With
his expanding
Callogross
party at to developmental functions, the ctor
change from regulatory harassed and of hard-pressed .
become the most al
gradually has as the backbone of dist
Yet, he is regarded strict
government employees.
administration in India.

5.4.1 Duties of Collector

district administration. He is normallv
The Collector is the key person of
Administrative Service. As the Collector, he is
a member of the Indian
directly responsible to the Divisional Commissioner and through him to
the State Government. His main duties are as follows:

1. He maintains law and order in the district.

2. He collects land revenue and other taxes promptly and fairly.
3. He directs and fulfils the development plans with which the
country's destiny is interrelated.
4. He performs various regulatory functions of the government like
rationing of food, purchase of agricultural products, regulating
the movement of commodities, etc.
5. He takes immediate actions in case of disaster, natural calamity
and any other emergency.
6. He carries on development activitiesof the government.
7. He acts as a kind of buffer between citizens and administration,
protecting one against the possible harassment by the other.
n order to maximize the number of officers in his district and
to keep his office efficient, he keeps friendly relations wl
governmental officials at the district level.
 District Administration: Changing Role of Collector
the 119
According to thelmperial Gazetteer of India, Collector of strong
a
Aempathetic character with the gift of
insight may gain the strongest
Lld over the affections and imagination of the peasantry and tales of his
cacity will be told in the remotest corners of the village
sagad

er his name has ceased to be borne on the civil list of themany years
la nosition of the Collector remains the same even province.
today depending
non his dynamism
upo
and his
approach to the citizens.

5.5 CHANGING ROLE OF COLLECTOR

Reing born in pre-independence India, the institution of District
Collector still remains one of the most glorious and honoured institution.
The dignified office, view some scholars,5 admirably survived the
historic role of change from an alien regime to a national one." The
democratic set up of India, vigorous attempts at decentralization,
increasing developmental responsibilities, rise of public awareness and
increasing freedom of public opinion are some of the crucial reasons
behind the multifarious role of the Collector.
Belonging to the Indian Administrative Service and appointed under
the Land Revenue Code, the Collector is vested with powers under the
various Central and State laws. He is appointed to a district in a State
in accordance with the existing scheme of IAS. [AS direct recruits are
posted as Collectors in their twenties or thirties whereas the promoters
to the IAS from the State civil services occupy this position generally in
their fifties.
Unlike their British forefathers, who considered themselves as
uncrowned sovereigns of an empire, the Collectors in the post-
vision for
independence period are much more enthusiastic with a bright
the social
the welfare of the respective district-dwellers. Besides,
background of this institution has also undergone a significant change.
strata of society, the
While the earlier Collectors belonged to the upper
and to the middle and even low income
more
newer ones belong more
and reservation of seats. Hence,
groups' due to the spread of education
have a greater degree of
these newer Collectors are expected to
the underprivileged sections. The
sympathy and understanding for
is thus controlled by such
ultimate power of the Indian bureaucracy
Collectors.
socio-economic background of
SOCial forces as the changing
India weakened
The introduction of the Constitution of independent
extent. Article 50 of our
the position of the Collector to a significant
in pre
the judiciary from the executive. Whereas
Constitution separates
exercised both executive and judicial
ndependence India, the Collectors to be
in post-independence India separate
judicial officers began
Powers, As a result,
Collectors nowadays no longer
appointed in the districts. British
as their forefathers did in the
the same judicial authority
nold
period.
 ndun
al Departments like
Jabour,
in
D e p a r t m e n t s

Administration

t e c h n i c a l

Public of of executive officers

s wh
who
120 n u m b e r
host
r a s t i c ro
with a
of a
along
drastic
d reduction of the
emergence etc. in the
The cooperatives,
r e s u l t e d

se technical Departments
these ents
has
ofth
of
agriculture,
Departments

authority.
Some
i n d e p e n d e n t the Collector.
these
also bes
been educed
reduced
relatively
and
has
h as also
collector
man

are
are

Collector's powalists
C o l l e c t o r ' s and
power
C ollector
and
the specialists

of lemocratic decentr
decentraliza in
headed by role
of d e m o c r a t i c
are developmental introduction

the uppermost tier of

The the
of the i"h Zilla Parishads,
Parishads,

aa result of
result
The
Zilla
at the distri
the district level
sharply
as Raj. have
emerged

form of
Panchayati

Raj
System,
independent
ent of the lector. In
the Panchayati
largely a r e the real
are
red' panchayats
three-tier panchayats
the of p o w e r , where red
illa Paric
centres

as
separate
West
Bengal, of the Zill
Zilla Parishad has
like the pOwer
p ower
some
States
CPIM)
CPI{M) party,
Collector
cally since the
drastically sine
the ruling
strength of powers
of the District
Political parties have
become an
curtailed
the
twentieth century. between
he people
the people and the
the
the
eighties of themselves total
c o m m u n i c a t i o n

channel of Collectors find themselves totally

States of India,
important
In many number of sensitive decisions
s,
a
occasions when
government.

alienated on
several
are taken largely by political
district dwellers,
affecting the
common

parties. overburdened position of the Collector

factors like the breakdown of law and
Many other masses, frequent
contacts with the
his loss of size of some districts.
district, unmanageably large
order situation in the
r e v e n u e department and
coordination with the police, the
problems of contribute to the
technical departments-all together or individually
the
reduction of the Collector's original power.
is still vast.
his influence is shrinking, yet his a r e a of activity
Though at the apex of the
He is undoubtedly the most important functionary
out: "The position of the
district administration. As Dwarka Das points
unconsolidated,
Collector has remained a classic example of unclassified,
of the
diffused responsibility that seems to be one of the marked features
to
Indian administrative system."1" In fact, even after losing his powers
some extent, his responsibility is not reduced. This is somewhat
reflected in the observation of D. Appleby: "He (the Collector) was in
earlier days and is now somewhat in theory or in most nostalgic
yearning more or less responsible for everything done by the

government within his geographical area."

In a democratic political set-up like India's, the role-content may
change. No institution at present can be an exact replica of what it was
originally. Today, in the perspective of public welfare as
gOvernmental objective in general, in spite of the reduction of te
Ollector s powers, he still remains the general manager of the busines
of the State government at the district level. His functions in
relative importance valy
and in scale from one State to
Irom one another ana even
season to another in the same State or 12
district.
 DINttdmmnhatn Changng Role of the (ollrctor 121
6 MANYSIDED TASKS OF THE COLLECTOR
this seetion, we
dI8CU8N the
multifarioua taskA of the District
as theReveue Colleetor. Distriet Collector
Magistrate, Coordinator
hanartments at the distriet level, Crisis Administrator and of various
Officer. Developmont

5.6.1 Revenue Collector

The traditional and the toremost task of the Colloctor is to asses8 and
allect land revenue as the head of revenue administration of
the
district. S.S. Khera and H. Rai point out two
firstis that revenue principles in this regard"
the which is assessed must be collected
in
strictly avoiding any tendency to relax and the second one is full
timely
eollection of the dues. The second principle is stressed particularly
because, in case of lapse, collection becomes more and more difficult.
Taxes due to the government may be of several types like irrigation
dues, income-tax dues, agricultural dues, canal dues, various kinds of
loans, etc. The collection of sales tax arrears is another responsibility of
the Collector. Excise duties on various commodities like drugs, petrol,
liquor, etc. are levied by the District Excise Officer, working under the
Collector.
Agricultural loans are distributed by the Collector and his staff.
Relief works are to be taken up on a very extensive scale in case of
famine or flood when land revenue rents may be suspended.14
The Collector is also responsible for land acquisition. Due to many
developmental projects, housing schemes, ete., land has to be acquired
for public purposes. Under the Indian Treasure Trove Act, the Collector
has to report to the State Government about the discovery of a treasure,
its nature, value, etc.°
The Collector is responsible for general supervision, physical
the Accountant
verification, checking, certifying and communicating to
General of the exact balances as found to exist at his inspection. Again,
land
as the officer of the district, he prepares and maintains
revenue
demanded from him. He hears
records. A revision of such records is also
orders of the lower courts. In order
appeals in the r e v e n u e cases against
to perform such vast r e v e n u e functions,
the Collector has a huge staff
to assist him.

5.6.2 District Magistrate

also of immense. As the
magisterial function of the Collector is
ne for the maintenance of
Magistrate, the Collector is responsible
D1strict boundary of the
district. Socio
and order within the territorial and
1aW tensions along with
terrorism, smuggling
and communal
POLical his burdens.
several other offences have added to
 in I n d n
Administration
Collector
C o l l e c t o r
has to communicat
Public the
the
and jails. Ini
t h e jails.
the In t he district
122 M a g i s t r a t e ,

iciary and
judiciary.

Judiclary
Distriet
s u p e r v i s i n -

the and
e police,
D i s t r i c t

police, control
the
As sly with
with 11nder the
the c ot when
when the District Magistrato
under
ontinuously
that
is kept clearly he assumes charp of the
force
points
out he
police present,

is
o r d e r s . It
the
he
Khera
be,
is
may
his follow
and the istric
strict
District
M a g i s t r a t e .

junior must
u s e force
re or to use
the control tof the District
or
police to fire
ler the
h o w e v e r

and the must

order control

situation under
who who is
Magistrate
(DM) Police
(SP), seventies of the last
order. In the
the seventies

of to such
bet
betv
ween the SP
h e relationship SP
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t
relationship
according
the
t
Magistrate,
must
act
raised
relating
to s11
the general supervi
the general
reconcile
to the oSP in
was
debate
century,
a
attempt
was
made

freedom required by the

required byfreedom

DM. An ial essential

with the traced pack to the

be traced
and the e b a t e can be
debate can
the DM is d r e g a r d e d to
of this
of the
SP by The root
llector was
was regarded to be
Collector
working. when the
day-to-day Sp.
his
of the
19th century,
when in Police Manual the SP was
the Police
quarter and
an Police
Police Commission
in the district DM. The
Indian
all-in-all of the
the assistant
matters of
interfere in matte
described a s
a mere
DM not to
the modler n
of the police.16 In
asked
1902-1905
during and discipline
management
when supervision could he
departmental
be generated
the metropolitan cities
tensions can
times also, interference.
Since l1978, in

misinterpreted
as
responsibility for law and order
the
Mumbai, Delhi, etc.,the District Magistrate has
like Kolkata, Commissioner, and
Police
vests with the
in this regard.
nothing to say the DM faces certain problems.
with the judiciary,
In communicating already, separates the
as has been
stated
Constitution,
Article 50 of our the whole
result of this separation,
from the executive. As a of the
judiciary
proceedings is now the sole responsibility
range of judicial Court. The DM now acts
under the control of the State High
judiciary of writs is usually done
as an agent of
the judiciary. The execution
Under
the magisterial element of the district administration.
through
the scheme of separation, the DM
does not inspect trial registers and
case records.
in a controlling
Regarding his communications with jails, the DM is
from
position. He usually controls the district jail. He can visit the jail
time to time to see that everything goes well. He deals with such issues
as granting of superior classes to prisoners, premature release or

prisoners, mercy petitions by prisoners, etc. When a condemned prisoner

is executed, the DM is normally present because he has to sign tne

necessary certificates.

5.6.3 Coordinator Between Different

of the District Departments
Previously, the Collector used to act as the coordinator of all importa
orncial activities in the district. Since
Independence, this coordina
tunction of the Collector
began to be weakened as a result ot tne s dual
 District Administration: Changing Role of the Collector 123
setting up of many technical
uD of
ter the birthDepartments,
by ecialists. After at the district
and evolution level, headed
ealth, public works, of Such
public hea
agriculture, departments as
aeration, question which started to beirrigation, education and
cooper
the
he Collector be made responsible for
the
raised is: Can and should
se
ese Departments
Departmer into a
single whole'? These
coordinating the
activities of all
rk within
wor
the
district, are not under the Departments, though
direct supervision of the
Callector. administrative and technical
In
responsible to their respective heads of regards, theyin are rather
Departments
Socretariat. These LDepartments have their own theState
that they conduct on their own without developmental activities
This has resulted in the
being interfered by the Collector.
gradual weakening of the Collector's role as a
coordinating agency.
But onthis role, the success of the
district
significant extent. Hence, a strong need is felt to planning depends to a
strengthen his role in
this respect. If various Departments in the district work at cross
Durposes, then the very spirit of district development is
affected. Under these circumstances, the coordinating role of theadversely
Collector becomes more and more vital. In October 1965, the then Prime
Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri remarked that the Collector should treat
himself as a commander who would organize the activities of all the
Departments working dedicatingly as soldiers on the battle front. The
Collector should try to achieve the target that must be clearly laid
down.7

To play this coordinating role properly, the Collector should

regularly hold meetings of the officers posted at the various
Departments of the district. He should remove bottlenecks within
Departments by strongly controlling them, bring out unity among
Departments, achieve the trust of each Department and allow breathing
space to each.

5.6.4 Crisis Administrator

During crises, the Collector can get an opportunity to play his real role-
the role which emerges out of his vibrant consciousness and inner
the rule
potentialities. Crises, as O'Malley observes, "cannot be met by
of thumb procedure which is ascribed to a routine-ridden bureaucracy
of leadership and
but call for and bring out the higher qualities
During crises, T.N. Chaturvedi warns, work of the
as
resource."1 but of duty.
compensation,
of
Collector should not be done out of a senseboundaries when crises occur.
written
AS a result, he may go beyond the and outdated interpretation of rules
Crisis administration is not an oldvibrant and ever-dynamic response to
and regulations. Instead, it is a
natural
emergencies caused by
any unforeseen contingency19 During cyclones, etc. or
man-made
alamities like flods, famines, droughts,
the Collector who holds a
broad
Cr1ses such as riots, fire, blasts, etc., it is
 Administration
in Indan
124 Public
district. For instance,
during a o a communal riot
umbrella over
the entire
usual scenes. Temples and
fire are the osques are
ar
loot, murder and 's duty to see that
Collector's i
Atthat time, it
is the the police
a r e called, hospitals are alerted
attacked.
ca
arrive on time,
fire brigades
during floods, he has
to the
at ease. Similarly,
thearrange
public put
panicky
take m e a s u r e s
to control epide demics,
call for
r e s c u e operations,
drinking water. Under the Def ce of India Ri army
for supply of food and
exercise several powers during external attack. 20 :ks. 'The
the Collector can administrator was emphasized by
Collector's role as thecrisis
as well.2

5.6.5 Development Officer

After the introduction of development planning in India, the rol
Collector as Development Officer became more and more ninent.
Rural development, i.e. all-round development of the dwellers of
rural sector is considered to be an essential characteristic feature e.a
the
welfare State. On the basis of this consideration since 1952., with the
introduction of the Community Development Frogramme, a number of
programmes were launched for the benefit of the poorest of the poor
in
the rural areas of India. In the sixties of the twentieth century, several
rural developmental schemes were started. Such schemes were
specifically related to health, education, employment, improvement of
housing conditions and programmes for rural youth, women and
children. A number of area development programmes like DDP, DPAP.
TDP, CAD, etc. became important during the seventies of the twentieth
century. Eradication of poverty and improvement of the living standard
of the rural poor were the two basic objectives of such
programmes.
In performing these functions of economic
development, the
Collector's role is not that advisory, but rather of a Development Officer.
His leadership quality is particularly emphasized. It may be noted in this
context that the situation is not the same all over India. For
in
example,
Gujarat and Maharashtra all development activities have been
transferred to the District Development Officer who, also, is an lAS
officer. In these States, the Collector's role in
not vital. But in
developing rural areas is
Rajasthan, all development activities are the primary
responsibility of the Collector. In fact, the Rajasthan Panchayat Samiti
and Zilla Parishad Act, 1959, has given some responsibilities of
development upon the shoulders of the Collector who plays the district
role of
the District Development Officer
as wel.
The Collector, being
the Development Officer, is the
Chairman of the District Rural ex-officlo
Development Agency (DRDA), which 18
basically an agency responsible for the
implementation or ru
development programmes. Under a broad framework of Integrated Kura
Development Programme (IRDP), a number of schemes are
implemented by the DRDA. There the
are area-based schemes i
 Disthict Administration: Changing Role of the Collector 125
Desert DeveDevelopment Programme and the
Drought Prone Area
Programme. Aga Again, there are individual
ural
Training the Rur Youth for Self beneficiary schemes like
rvment Programme Employment (TRYSE), National Rural
Emplo (NREP) and National
orating Programme (NREGP), aiming atRural Employment
lovment to the rural youth. Some schemes like providing moreof
emp nd Children in Rural Areas Development
(DwCRA) aim at rural women's and
Jbildren's welfare. inaliy, there are such schemes as the Samagra
mVikas Programme which aim at the overall
development of the
rural sector of India.
The Collector plays his developmental roles in his
capacity as the
Lad of the District Industries Centre, Chairman of the
Committee, Chairman of the district-level BankersCity Monitoring
Coordination
Committee, etc. He is actively involved in implementing 20-Point
nrogramme. For the speedy settlement of land and revenue disputes, the
government launches revenue campaigns with which the Collector is
olosely associated. By developmental roles, all such functions are meant.

5.7 COLLECTOR AS THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

OF THE ZILLA PARISHAD
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the highest tier of the panchayati
raj institution in India, namely, the Zilla Parishad, is the administrative
head of the body. Normally, this post is occupied by the Collector. In this
respect, he is endowed with a vast array of powers and responsibilities.
He may be regarded as the pivot around which the entire administrative
system of the Zilla Parishad revolves.
Viewing his specific powers and duties in this capacity, the role of the
CEO can be divided into certain categories. These are:
1. CEO as the person enjoying the power related to Zilla Parishad
meetings
2. CEO as the chief archivist of the Zilla Parishad and as one

and coordination at the

exercising power over development
district level
possessing financial power of the Zilla
3. CEO as the person
Parishad
financial
aspects of the
4. CEO the person supervising the
as
Zilla Parishad.
Panchayat Samitis under his
who enjoys powers related to
First, we discuss the role of a CEO
ZAlla Parishad meetings. In this capacity,
he prepares the agenda for the
notes various items. He is responsible
meetings along with suitable
on
the
actions on decisions arrived
at the meetings. He keeps
or taking problems and difficulties of various
Sabhadhipati aware of the progress, the
in the well as the blocks under
district as
aepartmental activities
 nn Indu
126 Publie Adminstration
to attend all the meot:

In case he cannot attend, he must depute the ings

authorized
Parishad.Again,
distriet. he is of
Secret. the
the meetings. He may also ater
/illa
zillaParishad to attend
of the Permanent Committees of the Parishad as far as ible
in
role of a CEO as the chief
Next, we explain the archivist of
Parishad and as one who enjoys huge power;related to the the
and coordination at the district level. Each corresponder
Parishad is signed by the CEO. It is under his custodv where
velopment
e of the

of the Parishad are kept. He 1ssues necesSsary directives to t he records

level officers for the execution of schemes formulated h distri
Parishad and its Permanent Committees. He also obtainc slla
reports from the district level officers about the executior
utior gress
Schemes. Again, he submits the same to the Parishad and its Pern such
ymanen
Committees. The CEO of this category has also to secure coordinat
between the Zilla Parishad, its Permanent
Committees andd otL
governmental Departments at the district level to other
relating planning
execution of schemes. and
Now the role of the CEO possessing financial
Parishad is explained. The CEO0 of this category power of the Zilla
accounts of the Parishad. He prepares the maintains the nroner
expenditure of the Parishad and submits these reportsquarterly reports of
to the
Permanent Committee. In all matters Finance
relating
financial contributions, loans, etc., the CEO is to budget,
grants.
Parishad and its Permanent Committees responsible to the Zilla
order to prepare the budget of the through the Sabhadhipati. In
Parishad, the CE0 collects
figures of the probable receipts and of the Parishad.necessary
purpose, he can consult various
expenditure For this
State level officers
budgets. also draws up a draft budget with
He and State plan
draft budget along with the explanatory notes. The
Committee is placed before recommendations
the Parishad.
of the Finance
permanent
Finally, the role played by the CE0
of the
Panchayat Samitis under his Zillasupervising the financial aspects
of this category has some Parishad is discussed.
the Panchayat Samiti. significant functions regarding the The CEOof
At least two
months in
budget
prescribed for the preparation of the advance of the date
Parishad puts up before the Samiti budget, the CE0 of the
proposals indicating the resourcesFinance Permanent Committee the
Panchayat Samiti during the which the Parishad can send to the
offñces and works of the budget year. The CEO also inspects
by these Samitis. WhilePanchayat Samitis and the institutions managea the
the Permanent
any record of the
Zilla Parishad, the Committees want to examine
permission of the CEO of the Parishad,
with
Sabhadhipati,
Panchayat Samiti concerned. has to supply such records
prior
to tne
These, in short, are the powers
Parishad. vested in the CEO of the ila
 District Admmistration: Chaging Role of the Collector 127

5.7.1 Conclusion

s f l CEO of the 7illa Parishad must

possess the following
A s u c c e s s f u l

qualities
A in order to perform his funetions efficiently:

H e must be able to understand the basic needs of the people

living in his district. He must be able to speak the language
which the district dwellers speak.

2. He should possess some amount of imagination and drive.

3. He must be honest and dedicated while performing his functions.

In West Bengal, the CB0 of the Zilla Parishad is, by all means, a
neralist executive officer. But this is not a healthy practice. The
generalist officer does not usually develop a sense of responsibility and
gen
atfachment to the institution of the Zilla Parishad since he builds up his
eareer elsewhere. This is very much damaging for the institution itself.
On the other hand, there are such people at the Zilla Parishad as its
elected menmbers who do not have adequate administrative skill. Hence,
the institution of the Zilla Parishad suffers from a dilemma in the sense
the elected members, though having adequate attachment, lack
administrative knowledge and techniques. The officials, on the contrary,
have developed no sense of attachment.
in spite of having adequate skill,
to avoid such
In Rajasthan and some other States of India, in order
service is made available where the
problems, a separate panchayati raj
career prospects
of the persons manning the panchayati raj institutions
with the rise and growth of the Zilla Parishad.
are directly interwoven
out that a separatte
Hence, Henry Maddick has unambiguously pointed
the all-India level is necessary 22 Such
local self government service at
to offer
a service will
be able (a) to draw talents on a national level, (b)
better salary and (d) to provide reasonable
higher status, (c) to offer
scope for prospects.
to recall one categorization of the
Finally, it would be interesting
Maddick in one of his earlier and
Indian Zilla Parishads as suggested by
on the panchayati raj
in India.2" It is
quite wel1-known works (1966)
presented below:
can be found in the
State of Maharashtra.
1. Strong Zilla Parishads
mere advisory
bodies are found in the States
2. illa Parishads as
and
Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Orissa, Punjab, Haryana
of Assam,
Rajasthan. can be
3. Zilla Parishads, belonging
the 'compromise category,
to
Andhra Pradesh and
Uttar
found in the States of Gujarat,
are more powerful
compared to the
Pradesh. These Parishads
compared to the first
one.
second category and less powerful States
made for the Zilla Parishads in the
4 A special category is Bihar and West Bengal. Although the Zilla
of Madhya Pradesh, States are considered to have 'special
Farishads in these
 n Indin
128 Publr Administration

features', they would

fall
i category 2. In West D .West Bengal, there
are four tiers of Local Self Government insteadof
ad of the
three.
24
usual
However, the Parishads in these States are operating wi
variations. In Maharashtra, the Parisad 1s very strong, overe
with mni nor
the Panchayat Samiti. In Guarat though
the Zilla Pancha adowing
Panchavat at the district level) is powerful, the Taluk Panchayat
Panchayvat at the block level) fares relatively better compared i.e. the
counterpart in Maharashtra. In Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Rajasthan
with
district-level panchayat body has merely 'advisory'functions. In We
Bengal, along with Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh and Utt
ar
Pradesh, the district-level panchayat body is less powerful than thatin
in
category 1, but more powerful than that in category 2.23

QUESTIONS
1. Discuss the changing role of the District Collector.

2. Explain critically the manysided tasks of the District Collector.

3. Write short notes on:
(a) CE0 of the Zilla Parishad
b) Types of Indian Zill Parishads
(c) Types of Indian districts
(d) Major functions of district administration.

NOTEG AND REFERENCES