Trinath
Port Blair, Jan 22: Absence of representatives from vital government departments in Gram Sabha meetings is taking a serious toll on the Panchayati Raj system in the North and Middle Andaman region. According to reports, officials of several government departments in the district skip Gram Sabha meetings of various Panchayat causing a stalemate in execution of important rural works.
In a recent case, the first Gram Sabha meeting of Harinagar Panchayat in Middle Andaman (after the last elections) was postponed to Jan 13, 2016 due to absence of representatives from government agencies.
The reconvened special Gram Sabha on Jan 13 also witnessed chaos as government officials of various departments again resorted to absenteeism on the trot. Upset over the absence of government officials, the village Pradhan reportedly shot letters to the top officials of the North and Middle Andaman District Administration demanding disciplinary action against officials for bunking Gram Sabha meetings which take up issues of public importance.
“Gram Sabha meetings of Village Panchayats assume importance as various issues and concerns are placed for appropriate redressal. Villagers also highlight various concerns during the meeting which was addressed by the government officials of the concerned department. But absence of government representatives in Gram Sabha meetings in this region particularly the Middle Andaman region has made the entire system a futile exercise. The first meeting of Harinagar Panchayat was called off due to the absence of government officials of various departments. It was again called on Jan 13, 2016 and Heads of different Departments were requested to depute their representatives for the meeting. But again, the government officials skipped the Gram Sabha meeting,” said a villager of Billyground.
A sizeable gathering of villagers, who assembled in the Panchayat Hall were vociferous raising various issues. But the absence of government officials left them dejected as their concerns could not be addressed.
The Administration should issue a circular to Heads of various Government Departments to invariably depute officials for Gram Sabha meetings. Strict disciplinary action should be taken against officials, who are found to be routinely resorting to absence from Gram Sabha meetings, PRI members of the area demanded.