Jammu,
16/June/2013 : Appreciating the announcement of Rs. 420 Crore
Package for the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayats, AJKPC, All Jammu and Kashmir
Panchayat Conference has hailed the union government for sanctioning such a
huge amount for the empowerment of Panchayati Raj Insitutions in the state.
Anil Sharma, General Secretary of AJKPC said we 33,000 Panchayat representatives
welcome the package and hope that the union government would not only release
the money but would also make it sure that the amount meant for panchayat is
used only for the welfare of the Panchayats and state government do not divert
the funds for any other purpose as it has been doing in other schemes. Anil
said during our meeting with the Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi Last
Year, AJKPC delegation had raised this demand for the Panchayat Halqa
Development Fund like MP/MLAD funds. This is obviously a step forward and would
bring a trust amongst the panches and sarpanches who are otherwise deprived any
rights by the Jammu and Kashmir government. The AJKPC also asked the union
government to directly transfer the funds into the respective Panchayat’s
Constituency Development Fund Accounts so that the panchayats can independently
use this fund in consultation with the Gram Sabha without any interference of
the bureaucrats as per their needs. The state government should not take the
credit for this package by the union government as the announcement of the
package is the result of hard struggle of the innocent Panchayat representatives.
On the issue of humiliation of Panches and Sarpanches including female panches
in Udhampur by an IAS officer Yasha Mudgal, Deputy Commissioner of Udhampur who had made the male panchayat members to do Sit-Ups (Uthak
baithak) and made female panches to recite multiplication tables in presence of
officers, Anil Said AJKPC won’t let this serious issue be buried unless justice
is done with the elected Panchayat members and the guilty officer is punished
under law for her shameful treatment
with the panches.
