The state government owes Rs 950 crore to gram panchayats, and paucity of funds is hampering drinking water supply and sanitation, he says.
The state government owes Rs 950 crore to gram panchayats, and paucity of funds is hampering drinking water supply and sanitation, he says.
Tension prevailed at the office of the Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Commissioner (PR&RD) at Tadepalli in Guntur district on Friday as a large number of sarpanches protested demanding release of funds transferred by the 15th Finance Commission for gram panchayats.
The sarpanches expressed concern that they were not able to get even the day-to-day civic maintenance work done in the villages. The paucity of funds was hampering the drinking water supply and sanitation.
The leaders of the union of sarpanches told the media that the state government was supposed to give around 950 crores to the gram panchayats, but it was not transferring the money citing various excuses.
He said that the amount of the 15th Finance Commission was supposed to be made available to the gram panchayats for a long time, but due to the constraints being faced by the government, it was allegedly not being done.
Meanwhile, an attempt was allegedly being made to send money to the deposit accounts of the public. As a result, the panchayats were facing severe shortage of funds. The sarpanches warned that if this continues, the dharna will be intensified.
A sarpanch said an amount of ₹7,600 crore had been diverted earlier, making governance impossible for rural local bodies. He demanded that the Sarpanchs be given an opportunity to meet the Chief Minister, who insisted that their monthly honorarium be increased to ₹15,000.