Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Oct 16: Questioning the successive postponements of the Urban Local Bodies elections in J&K during the last few years, chairman of the NPP Harshdev Singh regretted that the State has been deprived of funds worth crores for development of Municipal areas which has been withheld by the Central Govt due to the failure of the State Govt to constitute the elected Municipal bodies.
In a press statement Mr Singh, a formers Minister said that Chief Minister’s recent statement that the elections to Rural Local Bodies would be held from April onwards to be followed by Urban Local Bodies elections amply conveyed that the Govt didn’t intend to hold Municipal elections during the current financial year. He said that non- holding of ULB elections during 2015-16 would further deprive the State of hundreds of crores for development of such Municipal bodies which comprised 74 Municipal Committees, 6 Municipal councils and 2 Municipal Corporations.
Hailing the recent decision of the 14th Finance Commission to enhance the funding for Local Bodies in the State, Mr Singh pointed out that the said Commission had proposed Rs 4161 crore for the State which included Rs 3117.36 crore for Rural Local Bodies and Rs 1044.51 crore for Urban Local Bodies with a precondition that funds would be released only if elected Local Bodies were constituted as a measure of democratic decentralization. He said that the 14th Finance Commission had provided a grant of Rs 125.30 crore in the first instance for 2015-16 which however, could be availed only if the elected Municipal bodies were in place during the current year.
Mr Singh further made a reference to Municipal Corporation Act which envisages in Sec 5 that Elections to constitute Municipal Corporations shall also be held before the expiry of its term of five years thus categorically providing that election process ought to have been completed in early 2010. He said that deliberate delay caused in the holding of elections is thus violative of Municipal provisions for which the State Govt is accountable and answerable to the people of State.
Follow our WhatsApp channel