Sreedhar’s CCE LOCA L B ODI ES

LOCAL BODIES
 History of local administration
How did the concept of local self-government evolve in India?
 Even though such minor forms of local governance was evident in India, the
framers of the constitutions, unsatisfied with the existing provisions,
included Article 40 among the Directive Principles, whereby:
“The state shall take steps to organize village panchayats and endow them
with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function
as units of self-government.”
 Later, the conceptualisation of the system of local self-government in India took
place through the formation and effort of four important committees from the
year 1957 to 1986. It will be helpful if we take a look at the committee and the
important recommendations put forward by them.
 Father of local self government in India-Lord Rippon
 Economic decentralization was done by lord meyo
India’s villages acting as little republicans this statement was given by Charles
met calf
Part-|X schedule-11 panchayats 243-243 O 29 powers
Part |X-A schedule-12 Muncipalities 243p-243 ZG 18 powers
 Balwant Rai Mehta Committee (1957)
 Originally appointed by the Government of India to examine the working of two
of its earlier programs, the committee submitted its report in November 1957, in
which the term ‘democratic decentralization‘ first appears.
 The important recommendations are:
 Establishment of a three-tier Panchayati Raj system – gram panchayat at village
level (direct election), panchayat Samiti at the block level and Zila Parishad at
the district level (indirect election).
 District Collector to be the chairman of Zila Parishad.
 Transfer of resources and power to these bodies to be ensured.
 The existent National Development Council accepted the recommendations.
However, it did not insist on a single, definite pattern to be followed in the
establishment of these institutions. Rather, it allowed the states to devise their
own patterns, while the broad fundamentals were to be the same throughout the
country.
 Rajasthan (1959) adopted the system first, followed by Andhra Pradesh in the
same year. Some states even went ahead to create four-tier systems and Nyaya
panchayats, which served as judicial bodies.
 Ashok Mehta Committee (1977-1978)
 The committee was constituted by the Janata government of the time to study
Panchayati Raj institutions. Out of a total of 132 recommendations made by it,
the most important ones are:
 Three-tier system to be replaced by a two-tier system.
 Political parties should participate at all levels in the elections.
 Compulsory powers of taxation to be given to these institutions.
 Zila Parishad to be made responsible for planning at the state level.
 A minister for Panchayati Raj to be appointed by the state council of ministers.
Constitutional recognition to be given to Panchayati Raj institutions.
 Unfortunately, the Janata government collapsed before action could be taken
on these recommendations.

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 G V K Rao Commitee (1985)

 Appointed by the Planning Commission, the committee concluded that the
developmental procedures were gradually being taken away from the local self-
government institutions, resulting in a system comparable to ‘grass without roots’.
 Zila Parishad to be given prime importance and all developmental programs at
that level to be handed to it.
 Post of DDC (District Development Commissioner) to be created acting as the
chief executive officer of the Zila Parishad.
 Regular elections to be held
 L M Singhvi Commitee (1986)
 Constituted by the Rajiv Gandhi government on ‘Revitalisation of Panchayati
Raj institutions for Democracy and Development’, its important recommendations
are:
 Constitutional recognition for PRI institutions.
 Nyaya Panchayats to be established for clusters of villages
 Though the 64th Constitutional Amendment bill was introduced in the Lok
Sabha in 1989 itself, Rajya Sabha opposed it. It was only during the Narasimha
Rao government’s term that the idea finally became a reality in the form of the 73rd
and 74th Constitutional Amendment acts, 1992.
 Panchayati Raj System under 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment acts,
1992
 The acts of 1992 added two new parts IX and IX-A to the constitution. It also
added two new schedules – 11 and 12 which contains the lists of functional items
of Panchayats and Municipalities. It provides for a three-tier system of Panchayati
Raj in every state – at the village, intermediate and district levels.
 What are Panchayats and Municipalities?
 Panchayat and Municipality are the generic terms for the governing body at the
local level. Both exist as three tier systems – at the lower, intermediate and
upper levels.
 The 73rd Constitutional Amendment act provides for a Gram Sabha as the
foundation of the Panchayati Raj system. It is essentially a village assembly
consisting of all the registered voters in the area of the panchayat. The state has
the power to determine what kind of powers it can exercise, and what functions it
has to perform at the village level.
The 74th Constitutional Amendment act provides for three types of Municipalities:
1. Nagar Panchayat for a transitional area between a rural and urban area.
2. Municipal Council for a small urban area.
3. Municipal Corporation for a large urban area.
 Municipalities represent urban local self-government.
Most of the provisions of the two acts are parallel, differing only in the fact that
they are being applied to either a Panchayat or a Municipality respectively.
Each Gram sabha is the meeting of a particular constituency called ward.
Each ward has a representative chosen from among the people themselves by direct
election.
The chairperson of the Panchayat or Municipality at the intermediate and district
level are elected from among these representatives at the immediately lower
level by indirect election.
 Types of Urban Local Government
There are eight types of urban local governments currently existing in India:
1. Municipal Corporations.
2. Municipality.
3. Notified area committee.
4. Town area committee.

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5. Cantonment board.
6. Township.
7. Port trust.
8. Special purpose agency.
 How are the elections held in the local government bodies?
 All seats of representatives of local bodies are filled by people chosen
through direct elections.
 The conduct of elections is vested in the hands of the State election commission.
 The chairpersons at the intermediate and district levels shall be elected indirectly
from among the elected representatives at the immediately lower level.
 At the lowest level, the chairperson shall be elected in a mode defined by the
state legislature.
 Seats are reserved for SC and ST proportional to their population.
 Out of these reserved seats, not less than one-third shall be further reserved
for women.
 There should be a blanket reservation of one-third seats for women in all the
constituencies taken together too (which can include the already reserved seats
for SC and ST).
 The acts bar the interference of courts in any issue relating to the election to
local bodies.
 What are the Qualifications needed to be a member of the Panchayat or
Municipality?
 Any person who is qualified to be a member of the state legislature is eligible to
be a member of the Panchayat or Municipality.
“But he shall not be disqualified on the ground that he is less than 25 years
of age if he has attained the age of 21 years”
 What is the duration of the Local Government bodies?
 The local governing bodies are elected for a term of five years.
 Fresh elections should be conducted before the expiry of the five-year term.
 If the panchayat/municipality is dissolved before the expiry of its term, elections
shall be conducted within six months and the new panchayat/municipality will
hold office for the remainder of the term if the term has more than six months
duration.
 And for another five years if the remaining term is less than six months.

S.No. Committee Name Year

1 Balwant Rai Mehta Committee 1957
2 Ashok Mehta Committee 1977-1978
3 Dantwala Committee 1978
4 Ch. Hanumantha Rao Committee 1984
5 G V K Rao Committee 1985
6 L M Singhvi Committee 1986
7 R S Sarkariya Commission 1988
8 P K Tungan 1988

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