New PR Act to cement gram panchayats: Jupally

Panchayat Raj Minister Jupally Krishna Rao has informed the Assembly that the State government was bringing a new Panchayatraj Act only to strengthen gram panchayats in the State.

During a discussion on Panchayatraj Act in the Legislative Assembly here on Thursday, Jupally said the State government was stepping towards Gandhiji’s dream of gram swarajya and as part of it, the TRS government was creating 4,380 new gram panchats, 1,311 Scheduled Tribes gram panchayats. The reservation for election of sarpanch would be same for 10 years, he informed.

The government was including vice-sarpanch for joint cheque power along with sarpanch. There would be three co-option members and the gram panchayat meetings would be convened every month, he said and warned that the government will not keep quiet if lay-outs prepared as they wished. The government allocated Rs.1500 crore for gram panchayats this year, he added. (NSS)