The government should not release the funds received by Panchayats to DRDA: Prem Thakur
The funds received by Gram Panchayats for development are now being sent to DRDR by the government due to which the powers of Panchayati Raj are being violated. BJP Organizational District Shimla President Prem Thakur has made this allegation about the state government and the Rural Development Department in a statement issued on Tuesday. Prem Thakur says that the funds received from other sources for development including disaster relief, MLA fund, and MP fund in Panchayats are being sent by the department to DRDR and DRDA is giving tenders for work to its favorites at the behest of the government. Panchayats have no information about the tender made by DRDA. The most important thing is that the report of the work that is being done by DRDA at its level is being sought from the Panchayats which is not logical.
Prem Thakur said that without funds the heads of their Panchayats have become helpless. They allege that DRDA contractors are directly sending JCBs for the maintenance of roads in the Kasupanti constituency, about which the Panchayats have no information and later the report is sought from the Panchayat. Such experiments may prove costly for the government in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.
He says that despite being the Minister of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj from this area, all the development works in the Panchayats of Kasanupati constituency have come to a standstill. Due to a lack of staff in schools and health institutions, people are not able to get facilities.
ADC Shimla Abhishek Verma said that the MP or MLA of the concerned area can give their funds to any agency for development work, which is their prerogative. Apart from this, the funds received by Panchayats are released in a phased manner.
