Welcometothefifthissue

ofGrasroots in2011.
Toillustratethelikely
gainsofanaggregated
auditapproachasoutlined
inourMay2010paper,LB
Divisionplanned,along
withtheofficeofPAG
(Civil)Allahabadandin
consultationwithRSI
wing,adistrictcentric
auditofruralsocialsector
inGhaziabadDistrict.This
auditexerciseinvolved,
interalia,auditinspections
ofDistrictPanchayat,
DRDA,BlockPanchayats
(4),VillagePanchayats
(40),civilDDOs(7)ofa
sampleselectedwithdue
diligence,andentryand
exitconferencewiththe
District&PRIofficials.We
selectedGhaziabadwasfor
itsproximitytoHQsothat
LBDivisioninHQcould
associateitselfwiththe
experimentalauditexer
cisewithoutmuchdiffi
culty.Wehaveincludeda
writeuponthisauditex
perimentinthisissue.
MoPRhasdevelopedan
onlineTrainingRepository
forPanchayatiRaj
(www.priresources.in)
undertheMoPRUNDP
CapacityDevelopmentfor
LocalGovernance(CDLG)
Projectwhichservesasa
onepointresourcecentre
dealingwiththeissues
relatedtocapacitybuild
ingandtrainingofthe
electedrepresentativesof
PRIs.Dovisitthewebsite
andregisteryourselvesto
getalertsonnewuploaded
contents.
Wealsohaveareporton
CBIprobeintoNREGA
irregularitiesinresponse
toWritpetition(Civil)no.
645of2007filedbefore
SupremeCourt.
Corrigendum
WepublishedAuditRules
underNREGAinApril2011
issue.Pleasenotethose
weredraftrulesnotified
onwebbyMoRDfor
stakeholdercomments,
andareyettobefinal
izedbythem.
Preface
ForinternaluseinIA&AD
May2011 Volume5of2011
G r a s s r o o t s
ejournalofLocalBodies&theirAudit
Specialpointsofinterest
WorldBankreviewofIndiassocialsector
programmessuggestsmallerPDSwith
morecashtransfer,reworkingofNREGA
asapublicworksprogrammeforurban
areasandsocialsecuritypackageincluding
healthcareforunemployed(p15)
SupremeCourtordersCBItoprobe
MGNREGA'irregularities'(p29)
UNreporthailsNREGA,urgesotherna
tionstoemulatefeat(p20)
LessonsfromGhaziabaddistrictaudit(p9)
Inside
Articles
2
DistrictPlanning
4
Decentralized
Governance
7
Implementationof
Schemes
14
InternalControl&
Transparency
25
LocalBodiesDivision
O/otheComptroller&AuditorGeneralofIndia
NewDelhi
FollowingarefewDosandDontsfor
effectivePRIscompiledbyShriV
RamachandranandShriSM
Vijayanand,ViceChairmanand
MemberSecretaryofStatePlanning
Board.
DosandDonts
GovernmentofIndia
Dos
Decentralizationshouldbeseenasa
basicconstitutionallymandated
governancereformandbegivenas
muchimportancethannowbeing
giventopublicsectorreforms,fiscal
reforms,powerreformsetc.
ThereshouldbeasingleMinistryfor
localgovernmentsatthenational
levelwithaclearmandatefor
strengtheninglocalgovernments.
AllMinistriesdealingwithsubjectsin
thedomainofPRIsshouldhaveaPRI
Cell,whichinteractswiththenodal
ministrydealingwithlocalgovern
ments.
AvoidCentrallySponsoredSchemes
inareaswhicharethelegitimate
domainofPRIs.WhereverCSSare
inevitabletheguidelinesissuedby
theMinistriesshouldgivepredomi
nantspecificrolestoPRIs.
Issueinstructionstodisbandparallel
bodieslikeDRDAs,FFDAs,BFDAs,
VariousHealthSocietiesetc.
IncentivesshouldbegiventoStates
whichstrengthenPRIs.Forthisa
decentralizationindexcouldbecon
structedusingexpertsandthestates
rankedbyanindependentagency.
FundsflowunderCentrallySpon
soredSchemesshouldbelinkedto
thedegreeofempowermentofPRIs.
Itshouldberecognizedthatitis
incumbentontheCentralGovern
menttodevolveresourcestolocal
governmentsfromtheCentralkitty
throughtheFinanceCommission
Awards.
TheStateshouldbeencouragedto
sponsorexternallyassistedprojectsto
strengthenandinstitutionalisePRIsand
suchprojectsshouldbegivenprefer
encewhilerecommendingforexternal
assistance.
Setapartapercentageofatleast2%of
CSSfundsforcapacitybuildingoflocal
governmentsincludingaccountingand
audit.
Restructureallstatisticssystemsin
cludingcensustobringtheminhar
monywithPRIboundaries.
PresentanannualStatusReporton
PRIsinthecountryintheParliament
alongwiththebudget.
SetupatrainingnetworkforPRIsby
linkingthebestinstitutionsinthecoun
tryandassigningspecificrolesand
responsibilitiestoeachinstitution.
PlanningCommissionandtheMinistry
concernedshoulddocumentbestprac
ticesanddisseminatethemonaregu
larbasis.
Basedontheexperienceof10years
afterobtainingfeedbackfromthewell
performingStatesaconsensusdecision
maybetakenformakingcertainkey
amendmentswhichamongother
thingscouldprovideforElectedDistrict
Government(insteadofDistrict
Panchayat),Taxesinthelocalgovern
mentdomain,etc.
MergeandreducethesizeofMinis
tries/Departmentsdealingwithsub
jectslistedinthe11thand12thsched
ulesoftheConstitution.
AmendallCentralActsrelatedtosub
jectsinthe11thand12thSchedulesto
giveenoughspacetoPRIs.
Introduceasystemforstudyingthe
localgovernmentimplicationsofevery
governmentpolicyorlegislationin
futureandpublishthefindingsfor
generaldebateorfordiscussioninthe
parliamentasthecasemaybe.
Donts
Dontconfinelocalgovernmentmat
terstojustoneMinistry.
Dontallowexternallysupported
projectstospawnusergroupsand
othercommunitybasedorganiza
tionsdelinkedfromthePRIsystem.
Donotgivediscretionarydevelop
mentpowerstoMPs.
StateGovernments
Dos
Developavisionofsettingupinstitu
tionsoflocalselfgovernmentas
envisagedintheConstitution.
Usedecentralizationtobringinfun
damentalgovernancereformslike
enhancedpeoplesparticipation,
citizenorientation,responsiveness,
servicedelivery,improvedfinancial
management,accountability,etc.
Playanactiveroleinhandholdingthe
processofdecentralizationwithout
directingorcontrollingit.
Bringoutalegislationwhichclearly
definesfunctionsofPRIsateachlevel
andnotjustlistsoutsubjects.
Actsshouldbefollowedupwiththe
softwarerequiredforoperationaliz
ingthemlikeRules,Government
Orders,Manuals,Circulars,andso
on.
TransferworkstoPRIsalongwith
workers.Thequestionofperforming
thefunctionsinfuturealsoneedsto
beaddressedthepersonnel,mode
ofrecruitment,termsandconditions
etc.
PRIsshouldcontrolthestaffworking
underthem.
Thereshouldbeaclearpolicyon
placementofstafftransferredto
PRIs.
Fundsrequiredtoperformtheroles
assignedtoPRIsmaybedetermined
andtransferredinanuntiedform.
Articles
Page2
Grassroots
TowardsTimeBoundPanchayats
FundstobetransferredtoPRIs
shouldbebudgetedseparatelyand
devolvedbasedontransparentfor
mula.
PRIsshouldbegivenresourceraising
powersbothtaxandnontax.Only
thelowerlimitneedbesetbyGov
ernment.
Thereshouldbelegalprovisionson
fiscalresponsibilityofPRIsdealing
withassessmentandcollectionof
revenue,borrowing,modeofincur
ringexpenditure,transparency,ac
countability,etc.
Allowlocalgovernmentstoprepare
schemesandplanslocally.
Controloflocalgovernmentsshould
onlybethroughindependentAudit
system.
Provideforanauxiliaryauditsystem
whichfocusesonconcurrenthelpand
correctiontoPRIsratherthanpost
factofaultfinding.
EvolveaCodeofconductgoverning
therelationshipbetweenelected
functionariesandofficials.
RedefinetheroleoftheDistrictCol
lectorbringingitinlinewiththePRI
system.
Selectbeaconpanchayatsthrough
atransparentandindependentproc
essandgivelargerfreedomtothem
todevelopreplicablemodelsofde
velopmentand/orgovernance.
Topreventrecentralizationintro
ducealegislativeprovisionwhich
makesitmandatoryforeverypower
beingwithdrawnfromPRIstogetthe
approvaloftheproposedStateDe
velopmentCouncilandthenthe
legislature.
Providespecialmechanismsforso
ciallybackwardpeopletoparticipate
inthePRIsystem.
Setupanempoweredcommitteeto
sortoutoperationalproblemsduring
theprocessofdecentralization.
CreatespaceforNGOs,CBOsand
otherCivilSocietyorganizationsto
workinharmonywithPRIs.
Provideforparticipatorystructuresat
alllevelstobringinmaximumpeoples
participationinlocalgovernance.
Givefullfreedomtolocalgovernments;
butinsistonfollowingnormsanddue
processeswhiletakingdecisions.
Redefinetheroleofparastatalsdealing
withfunctionstransferredtoPRIsand
bringinarrangementsforthemtowork
withPRIsastechnicalsupportagencies.
Introduceprovisionsforrighttoinfor
mation,socialauditetc.inlawsrelating
toPRIs.
Announceaclearcapacitybuilding
policyforlocalgovernments.
FacilitatePRIstooutsourceprofes
sionalandtechnicalsupport.
SetupaStateDevelopmentCouncilto
discusspolicyissuesrelatingtodecen
tralization
Donts
DonttakeawaypowersgiventoPRIs
underonelawthroughanotherlawby
introducinganotwithstandingclause.
Avoiddualcontrolofstafftransferred
toPRIs.
DontmakePRIsminiatureStategov
ernmentsbydownloadingthesame
proceduresandsystemstothem.
Withdrawfromareaswherepowers
havebeengiventoPRIs.
Totallygiveupdiscretionarygrantsfor
needbasedordemandbased
developmentprogrammeswhichare
nottransparent.
Dontallowparallelschemesandparal
lelsetups.
DontcontrolPRIsthroughofficials
especiallytheDistrictCollector.
Dontpitcommunitybasedorganiza
tions/NGOsagainstPRIs.
Dontprovidediscretionaryfundto
MLAs
DontmakeMPsandMLAsmembersof
PRIs.GiveupthesystemofMinisterin
chargeofanydistrictorDPC
DontretainpowerswithStategovern
menttointerferewithdecisionsPRIs.
PanchayatiRajInstitutions
Dos
Taketheresponsibilitysuomotuto
helppeoplesolvetheirproblems
locally.
Facilitatelocalsolutionstodevelop
mentalproblems.
Focusondevelopmentalaswellas
nondevelopmentalfunctions.
Improveservicedelivery.Encourage
peoplesparticipationinallservices.
Givespecialimportancetoproviding
citizenentitlementproperlyandin
grievanceredressal.
Holdstakeholderconsultationperi
odically.
Improvethequalityofparticipation
particularlyingramsabhas.
Devoteconsiderableenergytolocal
resourcemobilization.
Haveaclearperspectivedevelop
mentplan.
Buildupadatabaserequiredfor
planning.
Ensuretransparencyofalldealings.
Followthedueprocesswhiletaking
decisionsonresourceallocationorin
selectingbeneficiaries.
Keepalltheregistersuptodateand
preparetheaccountsaccordingto
schedule.
Makeconcertedeffortstoinclude
theexcludedgroupsinthedevelop
mentprocess.
PublishaCitizensCharter.
Introduceparticipatorymonitoring
systems.
Donts
DontlookuptotheStateGovern
mentforeverything.
DontbeclonesoftheStateGovern
mentinbehaviourorinpractice.
Dontbringindivisivepartypoliticsin
mattersrelatedtoPanchayatfunc
tioning.
TowardsTimeBoundPanchayatscontinued
Page3
Grassroots
Followingaretheextractsfroma
compilationofkeystrategies,learn
ingsandpolicyimplicationsdrawn
fromapilotexerciseundertakenby
UNICEFinVaishalidistrictofBihar
duringAprilDecember2009.Full
Reportisavailableathttp://
vaishali.bih.nic.in/DPMCWEB/St_Doc/Plan/
Vaishali_Learnings.pdf
AnoverviewofIntegratedDistrict
Planning
Accordingtoguidelinesissuedby
PlanningCommission,eachdistrictis
expectedtoprepareaDistrictDevel
opmentPlanthatintegratesplansfor
allitsconstituenturbanandrural
areas,aswellassectoralallocations
forvariousschemesundertheurban
andruralareas.Asamatteroffact,
theprocessofdistrictplanningoffers
acrucialleadershipopportunityfor
representativesoflocalgovernments
atthedistrictlevel,asthemandateof
consolidatingadistrictplanlieswith
DistrictPlanningCommittees(DPC,
henceforth;tobeconstitutedinevery
districtinaccordancewithArticle243
ZD/PartIXAoftheConstitutionof
India),basedonintegrationofplans
preparedbyallPanchayats,munici
palitiesandplanningunitsinadis
trict.TheDPChastwospecificre
sponsibilitiesinformulationofDis
trictDevelopmentPlans.Itisex
pectedtotakeintoaccountmatters
ofcommoninterestbetweenthe
PanchayatsandtheMunicipalities,
includingspatialplanning;sharingof
waterandotherphysicalandnatural
resources;theintegrateddevelop
mentofinfrastructureandenviron
mentalconservation,andtheextent
andtypeofavailableresources,both
financialorotherwise.Tothiseffect,
theDPCismandatedtoconsultsuch
institutionsandorganizationsasmay
bespecified.
StepstobetakenatStatelevelfor
facilitatingDistrictPlanningProc
esses
CompletionofActivityMapping,
therebyspellingoutthespecificre
sponsibilities
oflocalgovernments;
FormationofDistrictPlanningCommit
teesinaccordancewithArticle243ZD;
IssuanceofguidelinestoDPCsandlocal
governments;
Finalizationofformulafordistribution
oflocalgovernmentcomponentofthe
stateplan;
Indicationofsectorwiseanduntied
resourcesthatwouldbeavailableto
eachlocalgovernmentoverfiveyears
andoneyearfromthestateplan;
Indicationofresourcesthatwouldbe
availabletoeachlocalgovernment
fromcentralsourcesthroughCentrally
SponsoredSchemes,FinanceCommis
siongrants,andanyspecialallocations;
and
PresentationofasummaryofDistrict
Plans,alongwithStatePlanproposals
fortheEleventhFiveYearPlan/Annual
PlantoPlanningCommission.
ExpectedarrangementsattheDistrict
level
Compilationofavailabledatabasesfor
localgovernments;
ArticulationofVisionforlocalgovern
ments,mentioningkeyreasonsof
backwardnessandcoveringimportant
sectors1;
Organizingtechnicalsupportandca
pacitybuildingforDPCsandlocalgov
ernments;
Prioritizationoflocalneedsandplan
ningattheleveloflocalgovernments;
and
Integrationofplansofalldistrictlevel
planningunitsatthelevelofDPC.
RecommendationsofExpertGroup
towardsmakingtheroleofDPCs
meaningful
TowardsmakingtheroleofDistrict
PlanningCommitteemeaningful,a
numberofsignificantrecommenda
tionsweremadebyanExpertGroup
onPlanningatgrassrootslevel.These
includedthefollowing:
CSSguidelinesthatentrustthetask
ofdistrictlevelplanningandimple
mentationtoparallelbodies,suchas
DRDAsandDistrictHealthSocieties,
needtobemodifiedtoincorporate
theDistrictPlanningCommitteein
theprocessofDistrictlevelplanning.
ThePlanningCommissioncouldin
formStatesthattheDPCwouldbe
thesolebodythatisentrustedwith
thetaskofconsolidatingplansatthe
districtlevel.
ThePlanningCommissionshould
specifyatimeframewithinwhich
Stateswillneedtoissuedetailed
instructionscoveringthemannerin
whichtheDPCwouldperformits
functions.
Theremustbeafulltimeprofession
allyqualifiedDistrictPlanningOfficer
toheadtheDistrictPlanningUnit.If
suchpersonsareunavailableinthe
government,appointmentofprofes
sionalsoncontractoroutsourcingis
anoptiontobeconsideredandacted
upon.
Institutionalsupportthroughuniver
sitiesandresearchinstitutions,both
attheDistrictandStatelevels,could
beidentifiedforassistingtheDPCin
planning,monitoringandevaluation.
ThePlanningCommissionshould
continuetoprovidetherequired
supportfordistrictplanningaswas
doneearlier,exceptthatthiswould
nowbeprovidedtotheDPC.
Expertscouldbeassignedtowork
eitherindividuallyorinteams.They
couldbetakenonaparttimebasis,
onassignmentbasisorfulltime,if
theneedarises.
DistrictPlanning
Page4
Grassroots
IntegratedDistrictPlanningVaishali,Bihar
ItisfortheStatetodeterminethe
numberofExpertsthatcanbedrawn
toassisttheDPC.Thiscoulddepend
upontheextentofdevolutionineach
state.
Thoughideallytheyarebestdrawn
locally,expertscanbedrawneven
fromoutsidethejurisdictionofthe
district,ifrequired.Caremustbe
takentoensurethatparticipationis
voluntary,abovepartisanpoliticsand
abletorespectdifferentpointsof
view.
Withgrowingurbanizationofsmaller
andintermediatesizedtowns,there
isneedtoespeciallydrawinexperts
onmunicipalmattersandtheurban
ruralinterfacetoassisttheDPCin
planningforlocalresourcesharing,
areaplanning,soilandwasteandsew
agedisposalandothersuchmatters
whichcallforclosecoordinationbe
tweenPanchayatsandMunicipalities.
TheDPCcouldalsoconstituteafew
sectoralsubcommitteesforboththe
envisioningandtheconsolidationproc
esses.
Itisstronglyrecommendedthateach
IntermediatePanchayatbeprovideda
planninganddataunit,whichcould
alsobeintegratedintothelargercon
ceptofhavingaResourceCentreat
eachIntermediatePanchayatlevel,to
provideabasketofpooledservices,
suchasforengineering,agriculture,
watersheddevelopment,womenand
childcare,publichealthetc.,which
GramPanchayatscandrawuponfor
supportinplanningandimplementa
tion.
OneoftheprimarytasksoftheDPC
wouldbetobuildcapacityfordecen
tralizedplanninginthedistrict.A
majorimpedimenttoproperplan
ningisthelackofpersonnel
providingplanningsupportandavail
abilityofgoodandcomprehensible
informationattheIntermediateand
GramPanchayatlevel.
TheDPCshouldbeentrustedwith
anchoringthepreparationofthe
visiondocument,themaintenanceof
databases,trainingofplanners,
evaluationofoutcomes,internal
monitoringofperformanceandinde
pendentevaluationofoutcomes.
IntegratedDistrictPlanningVaishali,Bihar
Publicvolunteerstohavesayinmunicipalplanning|TimesofIndia|15May2011
flagshipscheme,JawaharlalNehru
NationalUrbanRenewalMission
(JNNURM).Additionalmunicipalcom
missionerPKSrivastavasaidthe
schemeaimstobringtransparency
andaccountabilityinthesystem.
CVTCwouldtakeupnineareasurban
governance,urbanplanning,urban
environment,urbanengineering,
heritage,urbanpovertyalleviation,
urbanmunicipalfinance,urbancom
munitydevelopmentandlegalser
vices.
Thegroupwouldgivecrucialinputsto
theauthoritiesabouttheneedsof
people.Thiswouldalsohelpinmain
tainingconnectivitybetweenthecity
developmentplan(CDP)andthede
tailedprojectreports(DPRs)which
civicauthoritiesprepare,whileavail
ingfundsfromtheCentreunder
JNNURM.Infact,onvariousoccasions
inthepast,DPRspreparedbythe
stategovernmentwereturneddown
bytheCentrebecauseofloopholes
pertainingtopeopleparticipation.
Thatwouldthus,becheckedthis
way,officialssaid.
Interestingly,asimilarattemptwas
madebytheLMCsometimeago,
whichhoweverdidnotyielddesired
results.Sourcessaidthatinsteadof
expertsinurbanandmunicipalplan
ning,'undesiredelements'staked
theirclaim.Notsurprisingly,the
applicationswereconfinedtothe
dustbins.Thistime,however,mu
nicipalbossesexpectapplications
fromthe'desired'people.
Meanwhile,doubtshavebeenraised
ontheefficacyoftheadvisorybody.
However,Srivastavasaidthatthe
membersofadvisorygroupwould
beempoweredtohavecorrespon
dencewiththeCentredirectly.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011
0515/lucknow/29545386_1_urbanplanning
municipalplanningcitydevelopmentplan
LUCKNOW:Thecitizensmaysoon
getachancetoparticipateincivic
planningprocess.Inanambitious
step,theLucknowMunicipalCorpo
ration(LMC)hasdecidedtosetupa
cellofvolunteers,essentiallythose
expertsinmunicipalandurban
planning,whowouldadvisethe
municipalbossesonprojectsrelated
tocivicandurbaninfrastructure.
Cityvolunteertechnicalcorps
(CVTC)asthebodywillbecalled
wouldhaveitsmembersfrom
amongthepublic.Anyonecanapply
fortheadvisorybodythroughan
applicationwithclaimofhis/her
expertiseinurban/municipalplan
ning.
Finalselectionwould,though,be
donebyagroupofofficialsatthe
corporation.
Themoveappearstobemorethan
acompulsionthantheneedforthe
municipalbodywhichisrequiredto
fulfilthecrucialconditionsetupby
theCentreunderitsprestigious
Page5
Grassroots
Fromnowon,MembersofParlia
mentwouldhavetheirsayinthe
selectionofruralroadstobelaidin
therespectiveconstituenciesunder
thePradhanMantriGramSadak
Yojana,aprimecomponentofBharat
NirmantakenuptheUPAgovern
ment.
Inacircularissuedfourdaysback,the
ministryofruraldevelopmentin
structedtheStatestoappendaproof
ofconsultationwiththerespective
MP,amustnowforaproposaltobe
considered.
Aboutonelakhhabitationsinthe
countryarestillwithoutaroadcon
nection.
Makingforgreaterparticipationof
public,theproposalshouldhaveten
photographstakenduringtheTran
sectWalkshowinglocalsandifpre
sent,theMP'spresence.Transectwalk,
withcommunityparticipation,isto
determinethemostsuitablealignment,
sortoutlandavailabilityissuesand
moderateanyadversesocio
environmentalimpactfromaroad
project.
"Freshproposalswillnotbeconsidered
withoutthesedocuments,inaddition
tofulfillingothermandatoryrequire
ments,"thecircularsays.
Themovecomesafterrepresentations
fromseveralMPsthattheirviewsare
nottakenonboard,whileapprovinga
roadproject,seenasadevelopment
signintheirconstituency.
Asguidelinesdidnotservethepur
pose,theministryissuedtheinstruc
tionsnow.
Evenastheyletthepoliticalclass
takethecallonlocationofall
weatherroads,officialsexpectthe
movewouldexpeditetheprojects,
mitigatinganylandissuesastheroad
isnowundertheaegisoftheMP.
"Inspiteoflandavailabilitycertifi
cates,severalroadscouldnotbelaid
orhadtobedroppedongroundsof
actualnonavailability,whichcould
beavoided,"aseniorofficialsaid.
Theministryalsoinstructedthat
qualitymonitoringofroadworks
intendedtoweedoutcorruptionin
projectswouldbecarriedwith
participationoftheMPstoaddress
theirconcerns.
MP'stohavesayinruralroadprojects|HindustanTimes|6May2011
Page6
Grassroots
Many attempts were made by
theGovernmentofIndiatointro
duce decentralized planning for
development; however, they did
notsucceedasaproperenabling
frameworkwasnotinplace,both
for planning and integration of
developmental activities at the
micro level. Recently, the Plan
ning Commission issued a guide
line mandating that all plans
starting from XIth Plan period
onwards should be prepared
bottom up, in a decentralized
manner.BackwardRegionsGrant
Fund (BRGF) scheme of the Min
istry of Panchayati Raj was the
first scheme to adopt the Plan
ning Commission guidelines in to
toandallBRGFstateshavebeen
directedtoprepareadistrictPlan
documentasagainstaBRGFPlan.
PlanPlus is a software developed
by NIC, under guidance and di
rection from Ministry of Pancha
yati Raj, in order to demystify and
strengthen the decentralized plan
ning process. The software is a
webbased software and captures
theentireplanningworkflowstart
ing from identification of needs,
the plan approval process till the
final approval by the District Plan
ning Committee. The software is
highly generic and can be ex
tended to capture the plans pre
pared by line departments at the
state and central level to generate
theNationalPlan.Thesoftware:
Facilitatesdecentralizedplan
ningprocessinlocallanguage
Capturestheplanningwork
flow
Convergestheflowoffunds
fromdifferentsources
Convergestheruralandur
banplanstogeneratean
integrateddistrictplan
Bringsabouttotaltranspar
encyintheplanapproval
process
Providesrolebasedauthen
ticationandauthorization
Actsasadecisionsupporttool
throughtheuseofsupporting
GISandgraphs
http://planningonline.gov.in/
MainPage.jsp
AboutPlanPlusDistrictPlanningSoftware
IvisitedGairsen,ablockHQin
ChamoliDistrictofUttarakhand(UK)
from12th&13thMay11.Gairsenis
situatedalmostatthecentreofUK
betweenitstwoimportantregions,
viz.KumaonandGarhwal.Becauseof
itsstrategiclocation,itwasear
markedasaprobablecapitalofUK.
Situatedataheightof3,000metres
(9,800
ft)
above
sea
level,
Gairsen
isa
beauti
fulvalley
(Gair=
deep;
sain=
plane).
Gairsenisarguablythebiggestand
themostpopulatedof9Kshetra
(Block)PanchayatsofChamoliDis
trict,spreadover40,700haandwith
atotalpopulationof~60,000.Ofits
~11,000families,~50%arebelow
povertyline.Thereare95Gram
Panchayats(GPs)withinGairsen
Block.
2.UKwascarvedoutofUPinNov
2009.Afteritsseparation,Govern
mentofIndia(GoI)categorizeditas
oneofthe11SpecialCategoryStates
(SCS).UKhasarguablythemostwell
definedsystemandthelargestnum
ber(~7,700PRIs)ofruralandurban
localbodiesamongstSCS.Itisalso
markedlydifferentfromUPinasmuch
asthevillagesaremostlyinthehilly
terrain,spacedoutatgreatdistances,
andaresparselypopulated.Yetan
otherspecialfeatureofUKisthe
predominantimportanceofforests,
especiallyinthevillagelife.Itisa
prominentstateintheNationalAffor
estrationProgrammewithoneofthe
largestnumbersofVanPanchayats.
DespitethecommitmentofGovern
mentofUK(GoUK)inAug2006,to
constituteVanPanchayatsasstanding
CommitteesofGramPanchayatsrather
thanlettingthemexistseparatelyas
parallelbodies,thethingsremainmuch
thesame.Likewise,thereislittlelink
ageofauditofPRIswiththeauditof
otherimportantgov
ernmentSchemesof
GoIandGoUKsuchas
IndiraAwaasYojana
(IAY),DeendayalAwas
Yojana(DAY),Atal
AwasYojana(AAY),
SarvaSikshaAbhiyan
(SSA),NationalHealth
RenewalMission
(NHRM),Gramya(UK
decentralizedWater
shedDevelopmentProject),etc.In
termsofdevolutionoffunds,functions,
andfunctionariestolocalbodies,UK
ranksatalowly19thrankofdevolution
indexamongstallthestatesofIndian
Union(IIPAstudy,EvaluationYear:
FY10).UKlostouton
12thFC'sdevolutions
forFY10becauseof
thefailureofGoUKto
constituteDistrict
PlanningCommittees
(DPCs).Theprimary
externalauditar
rangementsoflocal
bodiesinGoUKarefar
fromsatisfactory,
especiallyinrelation
tothegrowingcorpus
ofdevolutionsand
grantsoffundstoPRIs
andULBsduringthe
lasttenyears.
3.Soonaftermy
arrivalatGairsenin
theANof12May
(~04.00pm),ImetS/
BSPanwarDPRO,SKPantBDO,TD
HarbolaADOattheBlockOffice.Shri
SKPant,BDOwasmoreofatrainee
officerwhowasappointedstraight
wayinFeb2011withoutanytraining.
Itappearsthatthegenerallevelof
availabilityofdevelopmentofficialsin
UKisinsufficient.Oftherequired
numberof~32VillageDevelopment
Officers(VDO)for95GramPancha
yats(GP)inGairsenBlock(@1
VDO/3GPs),therewereonly10in
position.Theaveragenumberof
villagesperVDOwas10.Giventhe
factthatthevillagesarespacedout
milesapartinhillyterrainofUK,this
isareallysadsituation.Nowonder
PRIsinUKaretrailingbehindinmain
tenanceofproperaccountsandin
adoptionofPRIAsoft,ICTbasedac
countingsoftwareforestablishment
ofModelAccountingSystem(MAS),
asIsawinaGramPanchayatthenext
day.
4.Financially,themainschemes
operatedthroughPRIsinGairsen
Blockareasfollows:
DecentralizedGovernance
Page7
Grassroots
ExtractsfromtourNoteofDGLBtoGairsen,Uttarakhand
5.DPROandblockofficialsascribed
thereasonsofshortfallinexpendi
turetothereceiptoffundsattheend
ofthefiscalasalsotoshortageof
skilledaccountsstaff,becauseof
whichaccountsandtherebyUCs
couldnotbefurnishedintime.Inthe
meetingwithBlockPramukhand
GramPradhansthenextday,italso
cameoutthatplanningofdevelop
mentworkswasrathertopdown
thanparticipative,leadingtothe
shortfallinutilizationoffunds.
6.Ihadaninterestinginteraction
withBlockPramukh,SmtJankiRawat
andGramPradhansofacoupleof
villagesofGairsenBlockinameeting
heldatBlockOfficeintheforenoon
of13May2011.SmtJankiRawat
cameacrossasaremarkableladyand
leader,whowaswellversedwiththe
problemoftheBlock,besidesbeing
veryarticulateinexpressingthose.
ShehadbeenaworkeratShriBhu
waneswariMahilaAshram(SBMA),a
preeminentNGOofUKworkingespe
ciallyintheareaofwomenempower
ment.Shesaidthattherewasdiscon
nectbetweentheworksexecutedby
thegovernmentdepartmentand
agenciesandtherequirementof
peopleatthegrassrootsbecauseof
poorplanningprocess.Shesaidde
layedreceiptsofGovernmentfunds
andshortageofskilledpersonsfor
completingtheaccountsintimewere
amongthereasonsforslowpaceof
developmentexpenditure.Shesaid
thatshehadbeenmentioningthose
thingsinDistrictPanchayatmeetings,
whereshewasexofficiomember.
ShriBalbirSingh,GramPradhanof
Maikholivillagespokeaboutlackof
coordinationwithVanPanchayats,who
oftendidn'tallowrequireddevelop
mentworksinthevillage.Afewother
GramPradhanswhospoketalked
aboutdifficultyinexecutingMNREGA
works,insufficiencyofMNREGAwages
especiallyforskilledconstruction
works,lowlevelsofhonorariumpaidto
Pradhans,andshortageofVDOs.They
didconcedethatdespiteoperational
problems,MNREGAhasbeenvery
usefulincreatinglocalemploymentin
thevillageandinpreventingmigration
awayfromvillage
forwork.MNREGA
allotmentinGairsen
BlockforFY11was
>`7crore.
7.Intheafternoon,
IvisitedGram
Panchayat,Gwad
whichwasonlya
fewKmawayfrom
theBlockHQ.Imet
GramPradhanSmtRadhaDeviand
otherPanchayatmembers,ShriShiv
SinghBhandari,VDOandSmtGanga
Dhondhiyal,RozgarSahayikaof
MNREGA.
8.SmtRadhaDevi,Pradhan,wasan
energeticilliterateoldlady.ShriShiv
SinghBhandari,VDOwascurrently
lookingafteranimpossiblechargeof
22villages,asanotherVDOoftheBlock
wasonlongleave.SmtGangaDhondhi
yal,RozgarSahayikaofMNREGSwas
effectivelyworkingasvillageaccount
anttoo.Shewashighlyqualified(M.A.,
B.Sc.fromDehradun).Shewasacon
tractemployeeunderMNREGS,en
gagedataspecialdailywageofRs150/
=.BesidesGwad,shewasalsoresponsi
blefor
MNREGA
andaccounts
affairsoff
twomore
villages.
Therewasa
GProomand
multipurpose
villageas
semblyplacebuiltthroughMPLADS
funds.Itwasaverypoorsetupcom
paredto,say,aKeralaGPoffice.
Therewasnocomputer.GPrecords
toowerereportedlykeptatthe
houseofPradhan.NoModelAc
countingSystem(MAS)wasbeing
followed.Therewasjustonereceipt
andpaymentregister,whichhad
beenfilleduptoMarch2011.Appar
ently,thiswasthesituationprevail
inginmostoftheGPsinUK.Inorder
tobeabletoavailitselfoftheper
formanceincentivecomponentof
13thFCdevolution,GoUKneedsto
movereallyfasttoimproveupon
MASinGPs.
9.OnthewaytoGPatGwad,Ialso
visitedtheofficeofDyProjectDirec
torofGramya,whichisaWBassisted
DecentralizedWatershedDevelop
mentProjectinUKundertheDepart
mentofWatershed&Agricultureof
GoUK.Gairsenwasoneofthe10
developmentblocksinwhichGramya
operates.DyProjectDirectorofGra
myaatGairsenwasanenergetic
youngofficerShriBarfaal,whowas
ondeputationtotheprojectfrom
GoUKDepartmentofAgriculture.At
Gairsen,theprojectcovered30
modelvillages.Theavowedobjec
tivesofGramyaistoimprovethe
productivepotentialofnaturalre
sourcesandincreaseincomesofrural
inhabitantsindegradedwatersheds
oftheStatethroughsociallyinclusive
institutionallyandenvironmentally
sustainableapproaches.Gramya
worksthroughGPsandVanPancha
yats.
ExtractsfromtourNoteofDGLBtoGairsencontinued
Page8
Grassroots
LocalBodies(LBs)Divisionhadpre
sented(May2010)toCAGapaper
givinganoutlookforrecastingCAGs
auditresponsetotheimportant
developmentsinsocialdevelopment
sectorwiththeonsetofdecentralized
governancethroughLBsintherecent
times.Thegovernmentattheapex
level,thePlanningCommission,suc
cessiveFinanceCommissionsafter
theninth,the2ndadministrative
reformscommission,allhavemade
strongadvocacyformakingLBsthe
focalpointofplanning,execution,
andmanagementofthesocialdevel
opmentschemesimpactingatthe
locallevels.Butatthepracticallevel,
therearemanyaRubiconstobe
crossed.LBssharethepublicfinance
spaceofsocialdevelopmentwitha
hostofparallelbodies,government
departments,andagenciesatall
levelsofplanning,execution,and
managementinvaryingdegreesin
variousStates,oftenonlyasbitplayer.
LBDivision'spaperhad,therefore,
madeastrongadvocacyforaggrega
tionofCivil,WorksandLBauditwithin
theumbrellaofSocialSectorAudit
(SSA)undertheleadershipofoneAGin
state.Ithadalsocalledforvertical
aggregationofSSAwhichisatpresent
dispersedamongstDAIRC,DAILB,
ADAsIattheHQandamongstDGCEA,
PDESM,andPDSD.Subsequently,
IA&ADsPerspectivePlan201015
(June2010)alsoechoedthissentiment,
andemphasizedintegrationofLBaudit
withcivilaudit.Italsocallsforplace
mentofaninstitutionalframeworkfor
integratingauditeffortsacrossvarious
functionalareasandforcarryingout
therequiredstructuralchangesatHQ
andfieldlevel
2.Toillustratethelikelygainsofan
aggregatedauditapproachasoutlines
initsMay2010paper,LBDivision
planned,alongwiththeofficeofPAG
(Civil)Allahabadandinconsultation
withRSIwing,adistrictcentricaudit
ofruralsocialsectorinGhaziabad
District.Thisauditexerciseinvolved,
interalia,auditinspectionsofDistrict
Panchayat,DRDA,BlockPanchayats
(4),VillagePanchayats(40),civil
DDOs(7)ofasampleselectedwith
duediligence,andentryandexit
conferencewiththeDistrict&PRI
officials.WeselectedGhaziabadwas
foritsproximitytoHQsothatDirec
torLBHQcouldassociatehimself
withtheexperimentalauditexercise
withoutmuchdifficulty.PAG(CA),
Allahabadhassinceissuedthereport
totheStateGovernment(15Apr11).
ThisauditexperimentinGhaziabad
hasvaluablelessonsforusregarding
auditsystem,process,andproducts.
Tablebelowgivesacomparative
picturebetweentheprevailingsys
temandexperimentalauditap
proach.
LessonsinGhaziabaddistrictaudit
Page9
Grassroots
Parameter PrevailingAuditSystem ExperimentalAuditApproach
Integrationofcivil,LB
andotherauditsas
calledforinIAADs
PerspectivePlan(PP)
FY1015
Nointegration.Auditinspectionsconducted
disjointedly,bydifferentgroupsofPAGsoffice,in
variousauditeeunitsinciviloffices,parallel
bodies,LBs.IRsbringout,ifatall,trivialaudit
objectionsofoperationsmalfunction,without
muchsystemicangle.
IntegratescivilandLBaudits.Systemorientedreport
inginplaceofisolatedfindings.
Annualauditplanning Auditplanninginspectionoriented.Auditplans
oftheconcernedfunctionalgroupsofPAG's
officeareessentiallylistsofauditinspectionsto
becarriedoutduringtheyear,withouthorizontal
andverticallinkagesamongstsocialsector
auditeeunits.
Objectiveplanningaimedatassessmentofsystemic
frailtiesandonoutcomesofsocialsectorschemes
(SSS).Auditinspectionsplancoversallmajorunits
dealingwithSSSregardlessoftheirlegalstatus,i.e.
whetheraunitisacivilDDO,orbelongstoaparallel/
autonomous/localbodyunderoneteamleader.
Unitlevelauditplan
ning
Littleplanninginadvanceforunitlevelauditing.
Inspectionscarriedouttreatingeachunitin
isolation.Littleappreciationoffinancialand
operationallinkages.
Auditplanforwholeassignmentpreparedbefore
handwithdueregardtotheintersesynergiesofthe
unitsintheauditsample,asalsowithreferenceto
theroleofsuprasupervisorylayers.Inspectionsof
sampledunitscarriedoutinthatcontext.
Audittrail Limitedwithintheinspectedunit.Noreconcilia
tionofdiscordantinformationindifferentunits.
Runsthroughtheunitsspreadacrossdivergentfunc
tionaldomains,suchasvillageschool,PHC,DDOs,
DRDA,downtothelastmileGPsandevenbeneficiar
ies.Discordantinformationcaptured,examined,and
highlighted.
QualityofIRs Rudimentarycompliancechecksandscrutinyof
controlrecords.Moreinthenatureofinternal
auditreports.Highlightoperationalmalfunctions
(ofteninsignificant)withoutsystemicorientation.
Attributesbasedonrisksareidentifiedbeforehand
andtestedduringauditofallunits.
Introducesnewintermediateauditproduct,District
InspectionReport,inadditiontoIRsofthesampled
units.DistrictReporthighlightedimportantsystemic
issues.
Resourceallocation
time
160170workingdaysofmanyparties,including
transitdays.
45workingdayswithtwoauditteamsunderoneAO,
includingtransit.
Gangtok:Sikkimhasbeenselected
asthebestintheNortheastern
regionandthethirdbestperform
ingstateinthecountryforpro
gressrecordedbyPanchayatiRaj
fortheyear201011.Thestatewill
receiveacashincentiveawardof
RsonecrorewhileMellidaraPai
yongGramPanchayatinSouth
Sikkimdistrict,aconsistentper
formerinPRIachievements,has
beenawardedthe'RashtriyaGaurav
GramSabhaPuraskar2011'for
'conveningandconductingregular
andvibrantmeetingsoftheGram
Sabhas',apressreleasefromthe
RuralManagement&Development
Departmentsaid.TheRashtriyaGau
ravGramSabhaPuraskaraward
carriesacashcomponentofRs.10
lakh.TheMinisterandSecretary,
RuralManagementandDevelop
mentDepartment,alongwiththe
SabhapatiofMellidaraPaiyong
GramPanchayatwillreceivethe
awardsfromthePrimeMinisterat
aspecialconferenceatVigyan
BhawaninNewDelhion24April,
NationalPanchayatDay,itsaid.
http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/
sikkimselectedasbeststateinneforpanchati
rajprogress/653317.html
Page10
Grassroots
SikkimselectedasbeststateinNEforPRprogress|ibnlive|19April2011
Ranchi:Morethan1,200building
plansarewaitingtobevettedby
RanchiMunicipalCorporation
(RMC)asitiswithoutatownplan
ner,theonevestedwiththeau
thorityofensuringthatconstruc
tionnormsarentfloutedinthe
statecapital.
Theironyisunmistakable,espe
ciallywhenRanchi,alongwith
Dhanbad,BokaroandJamshedpur,
arewitnessingdemolitiondrivesat
thebehestofanangryhighcourt
toundoyearsofdamageperpe
tratedonthecitiesbyunscrupu
lousbuilders,whoinconnivance
withcorruptgovernmentofficials
survivedonillegalconstructions.
OnApril1,JharkhandHighCourt
askedthestategovernmentto
removetownplannerRamKumar
Singhfromthepostashedidnot
haveadegreeintownplanning,a
mandatoryrequirementforthe
post.
Thestategovernmentthensent
backSinghtohisparentwater
resourcesdepartment,andnamed
urbandevelopmentdepartment
townplannerGajanandRamas
successorwithadditionalcharge.
Italsodecidedtoappointtownplan
nersinJamshedpurandDhanbad,
whichwillseeaslewofurbanre
vampprojectsunderJNNURM.
But,sinceofficialordersareyettobe
passedsourcesclaimedthefile
waswithchiefministerArjunMunda
RMCisstillwithoutatownplan
nerwhilemorethan1,200building
plansawaitverification.Gajanand,
whoismonitoringvariousurban
infrastructuredevelopmentschemes
underJawaharlalNehruNational
UrbanRenewalMission(JNNURM),
willbegiventhejobatRMCasa
stopgaparrangement,officialscon
ceded.
Wearestillwaitingforanewtown
planner.Inhisabsence,theworkof
verifyingandapprovingbuilding
mapsofhouses,multistoreyresi
dentialbuildingsandcommercial
complexesissuffering,admitted
RMCchiefexecutiveofficerVinay
KumarChoubey.
Gajanandfitsthecriteria.Heis
armedwithamastersdegreein
townplanningfromtherenowned
SchoolofPlanningandArchitecture,
NewDelhi.
Atownplannerneedstohavea
mastersdegreeinurbanplan
ning,explainedManjariChak
raborty,theheadofdepartmentof
architectureatBirlaInstituteof
Technology,Mesra.
Graduatesincivilengineering,
architecture,geographyandsociol
ogy,too,canpursueamasters
degreeinthissubject,addedthe
teacherofBITMesra,Jharkhands
onlytechnicalinstituteofferinga
postgraduatecourseinurbanplan
ning.
Officialsatthestateurbandevel
opmentdepartmenthavenow
promisedtoadvertisefortown
plannersinRanchi,Jamshedpur
andDhanbadsoon.
Singh,whowasinitiallytownplan
nerwithRanchiRegionalDevelop
mentAuthority(RRDA),tookup
thejobatRMCafteritwasgiven
powerstoverifybuildingmapson
September1,2009.WhileRMC
looksafternewconstructionsin
thetown,RRDAdoessoforthe
outskirts.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110419/
jsp/frontpage/story_13871919.jsp
Capitalwithoutatownplanner|Telegraph|19April2011
ThePlanningCommissionhassetup
aworkinggrouponelementaryedu
cationandliteracythatwillsuggest
measuresforfasterreductionin
illiteracywithemphasisongender,
regionalandsocialdimensions,and
incentiviseStatestoachievecentper
centliteracyduringtheXIIPlanpe
riod.
TobechairedbytheSecretary,De
partmentofElementaryEducation
andLiteracy(MinistryofHuman
ResourceDevelopment),theworking
groupwillsuggestmodificationsin
educationalindicators,computation
ofeducationindexthatcaptures
groundrealityandsuggestmeasures
forimprovementsinmanagementof
educationalstatisticsatdistrict,State
andnationallevelsandreducethe
timelaginpublicationofeducational
statistics.
Itwillrevieweffectivenessofpro
grammesaddressingtheneedsof
ScheduledCastes,ScheduledTribes,
OtherBackwardClasses,minorities,
girl'seducationandfeasibilityofintro
ducingalternativesystemsforimpart
ingqualityeducationtothepoorstu
dents.
Inadditiontoreviewingtheexisting
PlanprogrammesunderElementary
EducationandLiteracyintermsof
access,enrolment,retention,dropouts
andwithparticularemphasisonout
comeonqualityofeducationbygen
der,socialandregionalclassifications,
theworkinggrouphasbeenaskedto
evolveadetailedperspectiveplanand
strategieswithspecificmediumterm
monitorabletargetsintermsofaver
ageyearsofschoolingandforprovid
ingqualityelementaryeducationupto
ClassVIIItoallchildrenintheage
groupof614aspertheRightofChil
drentoFreeandCompulsoryEducation
Actmandate.
Thegroupwillsuggestmeasuresfor
improvingimplementationofRTEhar
monisedSarvaShikshaAbhiyan,the
MidDayMealSchemeandvarious
literacyprogrammesforachieving
themillenniumdevelopmentgoals
andrestructureliteracyprogrammes
forgreaterinvolvementoftheState
governmentsandincreasingtrans
parencyandaccountability.
Theworkinggroupwillcomprise
officersfromtheMinistriesofHRD,
YouthAffairsandSports,Womenand
ChildDevelopment,SocialJusticeand
Empowerment,TribalAffairs,Minor
ityAffairsandrepresentativesfrom
civilsocietygroupssuchastheFoun
dationforEducationandDevelop
ment,SwamiSivanandaSociety,
Pratham,theSocietyforDisability
andRehabilitation,TataInstitutefor
SocialSciences,AzimPremjiFounda
tion,andUttarPradeshandBihar
StatemadrasaBoardsamongothers.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/
article2026559.ece
PlanningCommissionsetsupworkinggrouponschooleducation|Hindu|17May2011
Page11
Grassroots
GrassrootpoliticsDecentralisationofpower|TheSangaiExpress|24May2011
mechanismstoaddressissuesatthe
microlevel.
Butaswehavesaid,thisarrangement
comeswithcertainridersandthatis
theoverallauthorityoftheStateover
theseselfgoverningbodies.Thusthe
respectiveStateGovernmentsare
entrustedwiththeauthorityofdecid
ingtheexecutivepowersthatmaybe
disseminatedtotheselocalselfgovern
ingunitsandhenceaMunicipalCouncil
inManipurmaybesomethingquite
differentfromaMunicipalCouncil
foundinsay,AssamorWestBengal.
Inasmuchastheselocalselfgoverning
unitsareundertheoverallauthorityof
theStateGovernment,itsimportance
inpowerpoliticsissomethingthat
cannotbeoverlookedandthisisthe
reasonwhyelectionstotheurbanlocal
civicbodiessuchastheMunicipalities
attractsomuchattentionfromall
politicalpartiesandpoliticalleaders.
Inshort,electiontotheseselfgov
erningbodiesareusuallyseenand
interpretedasareferendumatthe
grassrootlevelontheperformance
ornonperformanceoftheparty/
partiesheadingtheGovernmentina
State.
Arecentexamplethatcomestomind
istheelectiontotheurbancivic
bodiesinKolkataandifpoliticalpun
ditshadplacedtheirbetsonthe
TrinamulCongressduringtherecent
AssemblyelectioninWestBengal,it
hadtodoalotwiththeresultsofthe
electionstotheurbancivicbodies.
ThesameisthecasewiththeMunici
palCorporationsinotherStatecapi
talssuchasMumbai,Delhiandother
metropolitancities.Tothelocal
Imphal:Powerandauthoritytothe
grassrootisundeniablyoneofthe
morefavouredslogansofademoc
racyandwhilenoonecanjustifiably
contestthemeritbehindthephiloso
phyofdisseminatingpowertothe
grassrootlevel,thiscomeswith
certainriders,asevidencedinthe
institutionoflocalselfGovernments,
suchasthePanchayatsatthevillage
level,MunicipalCorporationsinthe
metrosandMunicipalCouncilsinthe
lesserorsmallercities.
Inthehillswehavetheautonomous
districtcouncilsandfortownsthere
arethetowncouncils.Localself
Governmentisnecessitatedbythe
needtorecogniseandacknowledge
thelocalpeculiaritiesthataboundin
amultifacetedsocietylikeIndiaand
thisisoneofthemosteffective
MLAs,electiontothelocalselfgov
erningunitsisincreasinglyseenas
somethingofatestontheirperform
anceattheirrespectiveAssembly
Constituenciesforitisabouttaking
theopinionofthepeopleatthemi
crolevelwhereeachwardmayhave
issueswhichareuniquetothem.
ThepoliticalcultureinManipurisyet
totakeupthelinesfoundinthebig
metrosbutelectiontothelocalbod
ies,particularlytheImphalMunicipal
Council,hasseenanincreasedinter
estfromthepoliticalbigwigsofthe
State.
Itisalongthislineorinacknowledg
ingthemoodandopinionofthe
peopleatthegrassrootlevelthatwe
seeprominentpoliticalfigures,in
cludingtheChiefMinisterandthe
Stateunitpresidentsofdifferent
politicalpartiescampaigningfortheir
candidatesintheImphalMunicipal
Council,forwhichelectionwillbe
heldtoday.
Thescenarioisnolongerthesameasit
was15or10yearsback.Itisnolonger
acontestbetweentwoneighbours,but
aboutacontestbetweentwopolitical
partiesandtheirideologies.
True,electiontotheMunicipalCouncil
ofImphalisnotthesameaselectionto
theStateAssembly,buttheintensityof
thecompetitionandtheproportionate
growthintheimportanceofmoney
powerissomethingwhichstandout
prominentlyandthisyear'srunupto
theelectiontotheImphalMunicipal
Councilhadalltheingredientsofatop
notchpoliticaldrama,wherethewin
nertakesall.
Iftheimportanceandpoliticalsignifi
canceintheelectiontotheImphal
MunicipalCouncilhasbeengrowing
witheachpassingyearorterm,then
ideallythereshouldalsobeanincreas
ingimportanceorsignificanceinthe
roleandresponsibilityoftheCouncil.
ThemannerinwhichImphalMunicipal
Councilhasbeenfunctioningallthese
yearswillnooneindoubtthatthere
hasbeennocorrespondingincrease
inthesignificanceandimportanceof
thisCouncil,comparedtothehoopla
surroundingtheelectionoftheCoun
cillors.
Thisistherighttimetoquestionwhy
thisisso.AlookatImphalwillleave
nooneindoubtabouttheveracityof
ourobservation.
Atthemoment,Imphalhasallthe
negativecharacteristicsofanurban,
metropolitancity,butnoneofthe
positivesthatcomealongwithbeing
acity.Thelevelofpollutionhas
touchedskyhigh,thefilthanddirt,
earlierassociatedwithonlythebig
citieshavenowcometobeanin
separableidentityofImphalanda
fewhoursofrainismorethan
enoughtoreducealltheroadsand
lanesintorivulets.
Thetrafficmenace,theunmanage
ablegarbage,thestink,theabsence
ofproperwatersupplyprovisions,
absenceofcivicamenitiesarealltell
talesignsofasickandailingurban
localselfgoverningunit,whichinthis
caseistheImphalMunicipalCouncil.
Downtheyears,peoplehavebecome
accustomedtoreportsofhowem
ployeesoftheIMChavehadtocope
withnosalariesformonths,the
powermongeringamongsttheCoun
cillorsetc.
IdeallyitisexpectedofaMunicipal
Counciltobusyitselfwithactivities
suchasurbanplanning,regulationof
landuseandconstructionofbuild
ings,roadsandbridges,publichealth,
sanitationetcandideallythisisthe
righttimethatquestionsshouldbe
raisedwhichmayfindtheresponsible
peoplesquirmingwithdiscomfort.
Theraininthelastfewdayshas
undoubtedlyinconveniencedthe
averagemaninImphal,butitmay
alsobeseenasaGodsentopportu
nitytoraisequestionsbeforethe
candidatesandplayaninfluencing
roleinthechoiceofthevoters.
GrassrootpoliticsDecentralisationofpowercontinued
Page12
Grassroots
SpecialProgrammeonPRSystem|AssamTribune|16May2011
Statetoreinincorporations|TimesofIndia|2May2011
menthasnowproposedadeadlineof
45daysforacommitteetotakeadeci
sionand90daysforthegeneralbody.
Theclockwillstarttickingfromtheday
onwhichthefirstmeetingofthecom
mitteeorgeneralbodyisheldafterthe
proposalissubmittedtothemunicipal
secretary.
Also,thecorporators'protecting'each
othermaynolongerbepossible.Cur
rently,iftheadministrationproposes
disqualificationofacorporatoronsome
groundsandifthereisadispute,then
thegeneralbodymustpassaresolution
toletthedisputebeputbeforethecity
civilcourt.Tilldate,nogeneralbodyofa
municipalcorporationhaspassedsucha
resolution.Now,themunicipalcommis
sioner,onhisown,canreferthematter
tothegovernment.Thegovernmenthas
alsoincreasedthegroundsonwhichit
cansuspendaresolutionpassedbythe
generalbody.
"Theseamendmentsarenothingbut
encroachmentontheauthorityofthe
municipalcorporation.Ifthegovern
mentwantstoruletheroostinlocal
governingbodiesitshoulddissolveall
municipalcorporationsandtake
reins,"saidShamDeshpande,Shiv
Sena'sleaderofthehouseinthePMC.
IndependentcorporatorUjwalKeskar
said,"Thegovernmentshouldrecon
sidertheseamendments.Ifitfailsto
dosoIwillapproachthecourttostay
theamendments."
AbaBagulandRavindraDhangekar,
leadersoftheCongresspartyandthe
MaharashtraNavnirmanSenarespec
tivelyinthePMC,denouncedthe
cabinet'sapprovaltotheamend
ments.
TherulingNCP,however,supported
theamendments."Itisuptothestate
governmenttodecideaboutthe
amendments.Themunicipalcorpora
tionhasnosayintheseamendments,"
saidleaderofthehouse
http://
articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011
0502/pune/29499444_1_amendments
independentcorporatorujwalkeskar
municipalcommissioner
PUNE:Thestatecabinet'sapprovalto
aslewofamendmentstovarious
municipalcorporationActshasruffled
thefeathersofcitycorporatorsacross
partylines.
ThecabinetonFridayapproved
amendmentstotheBombayProvin
cialMunicipalCorporationsAct,1949
andtheMumbaiMunicipalCorpora
tionAct,1888toexpeditedecision
makingandbringinmoretranspar
encyinthefunctioningofmunicipal
corporations.Thegovernmentwill
issueanordinancesothattheamend
mentscancomeintoeffectimmedi
ately.
Accordingtotheamendments,corpo
ratorswillnolongerbeableto'delay'
anyproposal.Thegovernmenthas
decidedtosetadeadlinewithinwhich
themunicipalcorporationswillhave
toeithersay'aye'or'no'toapro
posal.Currently,thedeadlinehas
beensetonlyfortenders,wherethe
standingcommitteehastotakea
decisionwithin30daysfromtheday
theproposalissubmitted.Thegovern
Page13
Grassroots
UseofPriasoftandPlanplusUnderePanchayat|PIB|31May2011
W.BengalandKarnatakathatalready
havetheirownaccountings/w,should
aligntheirsystemwithPRIASOFTsoas
tointegratewithotherPESapplica
tions.
PlanPlussoftwareshouldbeextended
toalldistrictsandforallCentral/State
schemesandnotbelimitedtoBRGF,
givenitssimplicity&versatilityin
matchingwishesofpeoplewithavail
ableschemes/resources,theirconver
gence,generatingintegratedplansand
transparency&peoplesparticipation
inthewholeplanningprocess.
TheMinistryofPanchayatiRajiswork
ingwiththeMinistriesofRuralDevel
opmentandFinanceforintegrating
differentapplications,suchasPRIASoft,
PlanPlus,NREGASoft,CPSMS,tofacili
tateuploadingofinformationata
singlepoint.
Similarly,flagshipprogrammeslike
NRHM,SSA,ICDS,etc.shouldbe
motivatedtouseePanchayatforthe
evidentadvantages.ePanchayat
ConsultantscoulddemonstratePES
totherespectiveStatelinedepart
ments.
TheNationalPopulationRegistrydata
shouldbehyperlinkedtoPanchayat
Portaltoknowabouthouseswithout
toilet,drinkingwateretc.BPLdata
baseof2011shouldbeintegrated
withindividualbenefitschemeslike
IAY/SGSY/NRLMandalsoSocialsecu
rityschemes.ThiswouldmakePES
morecitizenfriendly.
http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?
relid=72403
TheMinistryofPanchayatiRajhas
advisedtheStates/UTstoadoptthe
useofPRIASoftandPlanPlusundere
panchayatmodule.Inalettersentto
theStates/UTstheMinistrysaysthat
adoptionofanaccountingsystem
consistentwithModelAccounting
System(MAS)forthePanchayats,
whichwouldbegreatlyfacilitatedby
PRIASoft,isoneoftheperformance
conditionsunder13thFCaward.
ImplementationofMAS&PRIASoft
intheremainingStatesis,therefore,
requiredurgentlybytrainingofMas
terTrainersatDistrict/Blocklevel,
whointurncouldtrainGPStaff.
MoPR&NICwouldassist.
ApplicationsinPEShaveinter
linkages.StateslikeGujarat,Kerala,
Schoolshavetouploaddetailsonline
everymonth;movetobringinmore
transparency
After innumerable midday meal
controversies, the Pune Municipal
Corporations (PMC) education board
is attempting to make the procedure
more transparent. Starting from the
coming academic year, the records
kept and updated by the schools
regardingtheamountofricetheyget
andeventuallyspendeachmonthwill
bemadeonline.
Sangeeta Tiwari, chairperson of the
education board, said, The whole
pointistomaketheentireprocedure
more transparent. Until now, all
details of transactions between
schools and the amount of money
sanctioned to schools used to be
manually registered. Schools had to
submit all the details once in two to
three months. From this year, how
ever, the schools will have to update
thedataeverymonth.
The PMC department sanctions the
amount each school has to get at the
end of every month. However, we
have felt that there might have been
schools that may have manipulated
their expenses. Now, each of the steps
of the procedure will be monitored
throughthedata,addedTiwari.
A total of about 600 schools will be
part of this programme. The data will
have t o be updat ed on
www.mdmpmcpune.com. Before this
programme, this data could only be
handled by the school and the PMC.
Now,anyonewhowishestofindabout
a particular school can log on to our
website and take a look at the data,
said Seema Rangde, superintendent,
middaymealsscheme,PMC.
Also, to make people understand the
conceptbetter,thePMCisorganisinga
training session. Close to 800 people,
including principals of a few schools,
are being trained by us. We are teach
ing them how to operate the system
and how to fill in data, added
Rangde. The ration for the schools is
in accordance with the number of
students in each class. Students of
Class1to5aregiven100gmsofrice
whereas Class 6 to 8 are given 150
gmseveryday.
Withtheaimoftestingthesoftware,
thedepartmentwillenterthedataof
thepreviousyeartocheckanyirregu
larities.Theadvantagesofthisproce
dure will be that the procedure will
becomemuchmorehasslefree.
Initially, schools had to submit data
bycomingtous.However,theonline
process will make it much more eas
ier and faster. Also, the software has
been designed in such a way that if
there are any kind of irregularities in
calculations, we will come to know
about it instantly, said Shankar
Mohite, who is part of the team
lookingaftertheonlineprogramme.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/midday
mealfoodgrainstobetrackedonline/778570/0
ImplementationofSchemes
RighttoeducationadreaminBaripada|TimesofIndia|3May2011
areengagedineachschool.Nearlythree
lakhstudentsinover7,606primary
schoolsfacethisproblem.Inupperpri
maryschoolswithsevenclasses,the
yardstickisatleastoneteacherfor35
children.InMayurbhanjdistrictthereare
lessthanthreeteachersforeachofthe
1,528upperprimaryschools,Acharya
pointedout.
Evennow,about3,565postsofteachers
attheprimaryschoolleveland1,528
teachersattheupperprimaryschool
levelarelyingvacant.Intheabsenceof
enforcementof"ElementaryCadre
Rules"about80percentofprimary
teachershaveretiredfromjobswithout
gettinganypromotion,whilethefateof
therestofthe20percentofprimary
teachersisnotknown,lamented
Acharya.
Surveyreportsindicatedthatabout14
percentofthechildrenbetweensixand
14arestilloutofschool,sourcesadded.
DPTAsuggestedthattheDistrictProject
Coordinator)andofficersofSSA(Sarva
ShikshaAbhiyan)shouldbedrawnfrom
theOrissaEducationServicescadresfor
betterandeffectiveimplementationof
theschemes.
Earlier,Sunday'smeetingelectedRam
ChandraSahuaspresident,Jagat
BandhuMajhiasworkingpresidentand
BimalKumarAcharyaasgeneralsecre
taryoftheassociation.
PramodeKumarJhankar,presidentof
theAllUtkalPrimaryTeachers'Federa
tion(AUPTF)andKamalakantaTripa
thy,generalsecretaryofAUPTF(both
fromBhubaneswar)werepresent.They
highlightedthegapsbetweenthe
objectivesofRTEandthegroundreali
ties.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/201105
03/bhubaneswar/29498911_1_primaryschools
teacherstudentthreeteachers
BARIPADA:Aslongastheteacher
studentratioandinfrastructureof
schoolsinthistribaldominatedareais
notcorrected,therighttoeducation
foreverychildwillremainadream,felt
theDistrictPrimaryTeachers'Associa
tion(DPTA)ofMayurbhanjonSunday.
TheRightofChildrentoFreeandCom
pulsoryEducation(RCFCE)Act,2009,it
said,wouldremainlargelyunreachable
thetargetgroupunlessthe
"environmentandatmosphere"in
schoolswasmademoreconducivefor
qualityeducation.
Evenafterthepassageofeightmonths
sinceOrissaimplementedtheAct
(September27,2010)thereremains
yawninggapsbetweentherulesand
reality.Talkingtothemediapersonsat
RotaryBhawanatBaripada,Bimal
KumarAcharya,generalsecretary,
DPTA,saidwhiletheguidelinessay
thereshouldbeoneteacherforevery
30student,herelessthantwoteachers
Page14
Grassroots
Middaymealfoodgrainstobetrackedonline|IndianExpress|20April2011
AWorldBankreviewofIndiassocial
sectorprogrammeshassuggesteda
smallerpublicdistributionsystem
withmorecashtransfer,reworkingof
NREGAasapublicworksprogramme
forurbanareasandfinally,asocial
securitypackageincludinghealth
careforthosewithoutregularem
ployment.
ThereporttitledSocialProtectionfor
a Changing India, was commissioned
by the Planning Commission. The
bank said the threepillar approach
should be combined with social pro
tection block grants by the Centre to
state governments that are more
tailored to the poverty and vulner
ability profile of the individual state
(s). The report says the number of
poor is sharply increasing in urban
areasbutnotenoughplansarebeing
made to help them as social protec
tion programmes are more suitable
forruralareas.
The report shows India is spending a
good amount for centrally sponsored
socialschemeswhichataround2per
cent of gross domestic product, is
higher than what developing coun
tries like China and Indonesia spend.
However, it makes the point that
while this is large, it tends to be re
gressive, underlining problems like
targeting and capacity constraints
withinstates.Itisthefirstcomprehen
sive review of the performance of
India's main antipoverty and social
protectionprogrammes,withthefocus
naturally falling on bigbudget pro
grammes like the National Rural Em
ployment Guarantee Scheme and the
Public Distribution System. The main
findingsofthereport,releasedhereon
Wednesday, were presented by John
Blomquist, the World Bank's lead
economistforsocialprotectioninIndia.
In its study, the report divides the
social protection programmes in India
into three categories: those designed
toprotectpoorhouseholds(PDS,Indira
Gandhi National Old Age, Widow and
Disabled pensions and NREGA), those
designed to prevent households from
fallingintopoverty(RashtriyaSwasthya
Bima Yojana, Aam Admi Bima Yojana)
and those designed to promote move
ment out of poverty (National Rural
LivelihoodsMission,MiddayMeals).
About the PDS system, the report says
that while it costs 1 per cent of GDP
andcoversupto23percentofhouse
holds,itseffectonpovertyreductionis
low due to high leakages to the non
poor in other words, corruption.
Only41percentofthegrainreleased
by the government reached the tar
geted households in 200405, the
report said. Citing Planning Commis
sion data, the report says that in the
early 2000s, a whopping 91.1 per
centofgrainallocatedforBPLhouse
holds in Bihar did not reach their
intended targets. West Bengal per
formed the best of all the states in
this regard, with 73 per cent of the
grain allocated for BPL household
reachingthetargetedhouseholds.
On NREGA, the report said that the
allocation for this programme is
approximately 0.6 per cent of GDP,
upto2009.Italsolaudstheinclusion
of the poorest i.e.; the scheduled
castes,tribalsandwomenasworkers
intheprogramme.
However, it also underlined the fact
that the NREGA implementation
across states was uneven, with Ra
jasthan at the top, with around 90
per cent implementation and Punjab
at the bottom, with around 5 per
centimplementation.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/shrinkpds&rework
nregaworldbanktellsindia/792905/0
ShrinkPDS&reworkNREGA,WorldBanktellsIndia|IndianExpress|19May2011
PRprogrammes'shouldbeonPPPbasis|BusinessStandard|25May2011
devolutionofpowersandresponsi
bilitiestothepanchayatsforprepa
rationofplansforeconomicdevel
opmentandsocialjustice.
Italsocontainsprovisionforimple
mentationof29subjectslikeanimal
husbandry,minorirrigation,rural
housing,drinkingwater,socialwel
fareandpublicdistribution.
Intheeraofglobalisation,theimple
mentationoftheseprogrammes
shouldbedoneonapublicprivate
partnership(PPP)basis,thestudy
said.
PanchayatiRajisasystemofgovern
anceinwhichgrampanchayatsare
thebasicunitsofadministration.It
hasthreelevelsvillage,blockand
district.
Atpresent,thereareover2.33lakh
grampanchayats,6,000intermedi
atepanchayatsand540district
panchayats,thestudysaid.
http://www.businessstandard.com/india/
news/panchayatirajprogrammes
implementionshouldbepppbasis/132903/on
OntheeveofNationalPanchayati
RajDay,industrybodyAssocham
hasaskedthegovernmenttoen
courageprivateparticipationinthe
programmesimplementedby
PanchayatiRajinstitutionsatgrass
rootleveltoimprovetheireffi
ciencyanddeliverysystems.
"Comingtogetherwithprivate
agenciescouldproducemultiplier
effectinemploymentgeneration
andinfrastructuredevelopment,"
Assochamsaidinitsstudy.
The73rdConstitutionalAmend
mentActcontainsprovisionfor
Page15
Grassroots
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|PIB|28April2011
Page16
Grassroots
TheWorldBankhaspaintedableak
pictureoftheimpactofthegovern
ment'ssocialsecurityschemesand
hasprescribedasolutionofmore
privateparticipationanddirectcash
transfertothepoor.Thebankhad
analysed11coreschemesofthe
Centralgovernmentwhichconstitute
about2%oftheGrossDomestic
Product(GDP)andsaidonly40%
poorestwereabletoreapfullbene
fitsofsuchlargeinvestments.
"Thereisproblemofcapacityand
leakages,"saidJohnBlomquist,the
bank'sleadeconomistforsocialpro
tectioninIndia.
ThePlanningCommissionaskedthe
banktoconductthestudyin2004
andthereportcomesatthetimethe
panelispreparingapproachpaperfor
the12thfiveyearplan.
ThereportSocialProtectionForA
ChangingIndiaalsofoundpoorer
statessuchasUttarPradeshand
Biharweremakinghigherallocation
forthepoorbutbenefitbeingreaped
bythepoorwaslesserthanthericher
statessuchasHimachalandPunjab
becauseofcapacityconstraints.
Thebiggestresourcedraineronthe
governmentwasfoundtobethe
PublicDistributionSystem(PDS),on
whichonepercentoftheGDPis
spent,with41%ofthefoodgrains
reachingthepoorhouseholdsonac
countofhighleakages.
"Majorityofthepooresthouseholds
werenotaccessingPDSgrainswithrich
takingmostofit,"thereportsaid.
Thevariationinaccesstosubsidized
foodgrainswasmuchhigherinurban
areaswheretheofftakehasfallento
halfbecauseofpoordeliveryinadec
adewithamarginalincreaseatthe
nationallevel.Aboutninerichpeople
haveaccesstoPDSascomparedtojust
oneinurbanareas,thereportsaid.
About83.3%ofIndianfamilieshavea
rationcardbutonly23.3%ofthemget
rationfromthePDSsystem,thebank
said,whilehighlightingtheproblem
withpovertyestimationandBPLsurvey
methodology.
Overall,accesstothePDSfoodgrains
wasfoundtobelowestinricherstates
suchasHimachalPradesh,Punjaband
UttarPradeshwhereasTamilNaduand
AndhraPradeshweredoingbetter
becauseoffiscalsupportprovidedby
thestategovernments.
Blomquistsuggestedtheoptionofcash
transfer,alreadyrecommendedbya
committeeheadedbyPlanPaneldep
utychairpersonMontekSinghAhlu
waliatothegovernment,andsaidfood
couponshaveimprovedfoodgrain
accessinBihar.
OntheNationalAdvisoryCouncilrec
ommendationagainstthedirectcash
transfer,Blomquistsaidthebankwas
onlysuggestinganoptionandwas
notaskingthegovernmenttoreplace
subsidizedfoodgrainwithmoney.
ThebankhadspecialpraiseforMa
hatmaGandhiNationalRuralEmploy
mentGuaranteeSchemeforinclusion
ofdeprivedsectionsandhighercov
eragethanothersocialsector
schemesbutsaidtherewasaneed
formoretransparencyinitsimple
mentation.
Onnineotherschemes,thebanksaid
theperformancewasmixedwith22%
to43%ofthepoorestgettingbene
fited.
Toimproveefficiency,thebanksaid
thegovernmentshouldconsolidate
allsocialsectorschemesintothree
differentcategoriessocialassis
tance,publicworksandbasicsocial
securityandproviderestofthe
moneyasdirectfinancialaidtothe
stategovernments.
BiharchiefministerNitishKumarand
ChhattisgarhchiefministerRaman
Singhhavealreadymadeasimilar
demand.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Only40poor
benefitingfromschemes/Article1699129.aspx
Only40%poorbenefitingfromschemes|HindustanTimes|18May2011
AndhraPradeshslipsinNREGAplanimplementation|DeccanChronicle|6May2011
Reddy,onFriday,thepercentageof
utilisationoftotalavailablefundsfor
NREGAinthestateis52.31percent,
whichislowerthanthenationalaver
ageof54.43percentduringtheprevi
ousfinancialyear(201011).
Giventhedataavailablewiththe
PlanningCommission,sourcessaid
thatduringthescheduledmeeting
withtheChiefMinisteronFriday,the
Paneldeputychairman,MrMontek
SinghAhluwalia,andothermembers
mayindulgeinsomepeptalk.
Financialperformancewithrespect
toMGNREGAneedstobepushedup
bythestate,thebackgroundnote
observed.
Evenincaseofworksbeingtaken
upundertheMGNREGApro
grammes,thenumberofcompleted
jobsisfarbelowthestatesprevious
trackrecord.Mentioningthis,the
panelnotesaid,Totalworkscom
pletedis6,338againstthetotal
workstakenupof4,64,528during
201011(Upto24March,2011),
whichworksouttobe1.36per
cent.
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/
hyderabad/andhrapradeshslipsnregaplan
Onceconsideredtobeoneofthe
bestperformingstatesinthecoun
trywithrespecttotheUPAsflag
shipsocialsectorprogrammes,
AndhraPradeshhassliddownbe
lowthenationalaverageinthe
implementationofschemesunder
theMahatmaGandhiNationalRural
DevelopmentAct(MGNREGA),the
mostambitiousofallCentrally
sponsoredschemes.
Accordingtothebackgroundnote
preparedbythestateplandepart
mentofthePlanningCommission
fortheplandiscussionwiththe
ChiefMinister,MrN.KiranKumar
Page17
Grassroots
Asoneofthelargestjobprogrammes
inhistory,NREGAoftengetsabad
rapfromthosewhothinkitdoesnot
contributetogrowththatit
amountstogivingpeoplefish,rather
thanteachingthemtofish,tousethe
Chineseexpression.
Now, theres an interesting proposal
in the works, floated by the Prime
Ministers National Council on Skill
Development, to impart greater
sustainability to NREGA employment
by investing in skillformation. How
ever, to make sure that the original
intent of the scheme is not diluted,
its going to be rolled out in a cali
bratedwayandmeantforthosewho
have already completed the required
number of days of unskilled manual
labour. Also, it will focus largely on
artisan skills, because NREGA was felt
tohaveunwittinglycontributedtoade
skilling as many craftspeople aban
doned their work to shovel soil and
build ditches, because it was a reliable
sourceofincome.
Meanwhile, as far as the skill develop
ment mission goes, hitching its wagon
to NREGA is a great idea, giving it a
countrywide horizontal reach to scale
up. Apart from the major crafts clus
ters, like weavers in Varanasi or
Chanderi,brassworkersinMoradabad,
etc, we dont know the dimensions of
our artisan community. NREGA has
phenomenal scale and covers all the
districts across India, and will help
providearealdatabasesothattheskill
development programme can have
greater range and depth. This will add
greater heft to the programme,
which aims to massively expand the
skilled pool of workers in health,
information technology, tourism and
hospitality, with private sector coop
eration. So this plan would not only
raisetheNREGAprofileandmakeita
productivityenhancing scheme
rather than simply welfare, it would
also make a huge difference to the
skillingproject,socrucialifIndiaisto
make use of its demographic advan
tage. At a less abstract level, it could
stopthefreefallofIndiancraftsman
ship, the slump in selfbelief among
our artisans who now feel that dig
gingawellgivesthemgreaterreturns
andsecurity.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/work
better/782734/0
Workbetter|IndianExpress|28April2011
Healthplansuccessmayleadtowiderspreadformoreschemes|EconomicTimes|2May2011
Theissuemaybetakenupatthenext
meetingoftheNationalSocialSecurity
Board,whichisheadedbythelabour
ministerandhasrepresentativesfrom
variousministries,includingagriculture,
ruraldevelopment,urbandevelopment
andhousingandpovertyalleviation.
Thegovernmenthasattainedsome
amountofsuccessinextendinghealth
covertothepoorthroughtheRashtriya
SwasthyaBimaYojanarunbythelabour
ministrythatprovidesRs30,000health
insurancetopoorfamiliesthroughsmart
cards.Thescheme,initiallytargetedat
theBPLpopulation,isnowbeingex
tendedtovariousunorganisedsections
suchasconstructionworkers,cooliesand
domesticworkers.Infact,itisthesuccess
oftheRSBYthathasbeensuccessfully
extendedto23millionpoorfamiliesin
330districtsin27states,thathas
promptedthelabourministrytoplanan
extensionoftheothertwoschemes.
"Sincewehavealreadycreatedadata
basethroughthedistributionofsmart
cardsunderRSBYandarebuildingonit,
thesameinfrastructurecanbeusedfor
universalisationoftheothertwo
schemes,"Chaturvedisaid.
AccordingtoSubhashBhatnagarfromthe
NationalCampaignCommitteeforunor
ganisedsectorworker,extendingthe
twoschemestoallunarganisedworkers
willhelpbeefupthegrosslyinadequate
socialsecuritycoveravailabletothe
country'spoorprovideditisproperly
implemented."Itshouldnotendup
beingarevenueearnerforinsurance
companies,whileworkersstruggleto
getbenefits,"hesaid.
Linkingthetwoschemeswiththesmart
cardsgivenunderRSBYwasgoodasthe
cardmadetheschemeportable."The
cardmakesitpossibleforamigrant
workerworkinginaparticularstateto
movetoanotherandcontinuetobe
partofthescheme,"hesaid.
Undertheoldagepensionscheme,the
CentreprovidesRs200pensionper
monthtoBPLpopulationover65years
ofageandthestatesareadvisedto
contributethesameamount.
UndertheAABY,theheadofarural
landlessfamilyisinsuredandthenomi
neeisassuredRs30,000iftheinsured
diesanaturaldeathand75,000incase
ofdeathduetoaccidentortotalperma
nentdisability.BoththestateandCen
tresharetheannualpremiumamount
ofRs200.
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/20110502/
news/29496377_1_labourministryrsbyruraldevelopment/2
NEWDELHI:Thegovernmentisexamin
ingthepossibilityofturningitstwo
importantsocialsectorprogrammes
intouniversalschemescoveringthe
unorganisedsectorinphases,takinga
cuefromthesuccessfulextensionofa
healthinsuranceplanto23millionpoor
families.
Thelabourministrywillprepareafeasi
bilityplantogetherwiththeruraland
financeministriesthatruntheoldage
pensionschemeforthebelowpoverty
linepeopleandtheAamAadmiBima
Yojana(AABY)targetingtheruralland
less.
"Theideaisinitsconceptualization
stage.Wehavetocarryoutstudiesand
discussalldetails,includingfunding
options,withtheruraldevelopment
andfinanceministries,"laboursecre
taryPCChaturveditoldET.
Theinsuranceplanprovidesdeathand
disabilitycovertoonememberofrural
landlesshouseholdswhiletheIndira
Gandhioldagepensionschemegives
400topeopleover65yearsintheBPL
category.
"Wewanttheschemestobeextended
totheentireunorganizedsector,butit
hastobedoneinphases,"Chaturvedi
said.
Page18
Grassroots
ThemovebytheReserveBankof
India(RBI)yetagaintoraiseinter
estratescomesasnosurprise.
Inflationpressureshaveremained
stronginIndiaforthetwoyears
theUPA2hasbeeninpower.In
thefirstyear,therewastheexcuse
ofthedrought,thoughevenhere
thecountervailingactiontimely
releaseoffoodgrainstockswas
neglected.Thesumtotalofpolicy
seemedtobetheperiodicfore
castsbypolicymakersthatwithin
thecomingsixmonthsinflation
wouldsubside.
TheBudgetofFebruary2011failed
totaketheinflationthreatseri
ously.Indeed,therewassome
complacencythattheGDPgrowth
ratehadbeennotchedat8.6%in
201011andwasforecastat9%for
201112intheBudget.Butitwas
obviousthatthe8.6%wasflattered
bytherecoveryofagriculturefrom
alowbaseofthepreviousdrought
proneyear.Foodgrainoutputin
201011didnotexceedthelevelof
twoyearspreviously.Yetthehigh
figurewasclaimedandthehigher
figureof9%wasenshrinedinthe
Budget.
TheBudgetdidnotmentionthat
thenominalgrowthofGDPin2010
11hadbeenashighas25%,ifnot
higher.Thereductionofthedebt
GDPratiowasclaimedasapositive
resultbutnotlinkedtoinflation.
Butaneconomywith1516%infla
tionhastobetreatedasinneedof
seriouscure.Itwasclearthatif
inflationpressureswerenottobe
tackled,therewouldbeasetback
forgrowth.Iwasbearishonthe
Budgetdayandthought8%would
behardtoachieve.
Thingshavegotworse.Thedomes
ticinflationarypressuresmayhave
switchedfromsupplyshortageto
excessdemand,thoughsupplyside
bottlenecksremain.Theextrafactor
istheinternationalpriceriseofoil
andcommodities,partlythanksto
Chinesegrowthbutalsodueto
quantitativeeasingthatisflooding
themarketswithexcessliquidity.
Theworldeconomyhasbecome
tolerantofaslightlyhigherinflation
ratethanbeforetheGreatRecession
becausewesternmonetaryauthori
tiesdonotwanttokillthefragile
recovery.
Indiahasaveryloosefiscalpolicy
notonlyduetothepumppriming
duringthegrowthrecessionof2008
09and200910,butevennowthere
isnosignoffiscaltightening.The
Budgetdevotesathirdofthetotal
revenuecollectiontointerestpay
mentsondebt,tentimeswhatit
devotestohealthoreducation.
Thereisnourgencyaboutreducing
thedebtGDPratioeitherbymore
rapiddivestingofpublicassetsorby
reininginexpenditure.
Indeed,thespendingpolicyofthe
UPAisbeingrunbytheNAC,which
doesnotlikeliberalreformorevena
highgrowthrate.Yetitlovesto
spendtherevenuescollectedthanks
tothebuoyantgrowthonitspet
projects.Thesearenodoubtwor
thyNREGA,healthaudit,foodse
curity,etcbutnoneofthemcon
tributetoraisingoutput.NREGAisa
stopgapschemeanddoesnotraise
theskilllevelorproductivityofthe
workers.Itmaymakethemgrateful
whenitcomestovotingatelection
timesbuttheirpovertywillnotbe
tackledbystayingathomeandwork
ingatmost100days.
ItjustmaybethattheUPAishaving
anaversiontohighgrowthrateslest
itmaybeseentobeworshippingat
theTempleofMammon.Thecryof
thehourseemstobethatthe
foundationofawelfarestatehas
tobelaidinruralareas,atleastfor
BPLfamilies.Thisagaincannotbea
badidea.Buttheissueis:willthere
besufficientgrowthtofinanceit?
Onestrongargumentwillbemade
thatimprovinghealthandprovid
ingfoodsecuritywillbythemselves
raisenotonlythelevelsofwell
beingbutalsothelevelsofproduc
tivityoftheruralpoor.Thisextra
productivitywouldthenfinance
theextraspending.Yetthereneeds
tobesomestrongquantitative
evidencethatsuchisthecase.My
scepticismisbecauseofthefact
thattheruralsector,bothinagri
cultureandotheractivities,isalow
productivitysector.Growthhas
beenmainlyduetourbanmanu
facturingandservicesandnotrural
activities.Indeed,astrategyfor
povertyreductionwouldbeto
moveworkersfromlowproductiv
ityagricultureandancillaryrural
activitiestolowtechmanufactur
ing,whichcanemployunskilled
andsemiskilledmanuallabour.
NREGAdoesexactlytheopposite
byconfiningtheworkerstothe
ruralareas.
Myhunchisthatin201112,GDP
growthwillhitbelow8%,perhaps
aslowas7%.Inflationwillbein
doubledigits.Withreformsno
longerontheforefrontandelec
tionsloominginUP,theriskaverse
Congressleadershipwillletgrowth
go.Thenweshallregrettheendof
theIndianmiracle.
Theauthorisaprominentecono
mistandLabourpeer
http://www.financialexpress.com/news/
columnnregasthecureaswellasthe
problem/787590/0
NREGAsthecureaswellastheproblem|FinancialExpress|9May2011
Page19
Grassroots
Jaipur:Thestategovernmenthas
switchedtofundingwaterconserva
tionandharvestingprojectsthrough
theMahatmaGandhiNationalRural
EmployeeGuaranteeAct(MNREGA).
Inthefiscal201011,waterconserva
tionprojectsguzzledmaximumfunds
releasedundertheMNREGAwiththe
governmentdecidingtochannel
morethan40percentofthetotal
fundsintowaterharvesting,restora
tionoftraditionalwaterbaorisand
desiltingofwaterbodieslikeponds
andlakes.Fundswerechannelled
intonewsectorslikemicroirrigation
andtreeplantation.
Theinvestmentinwaterconservation
projectsin201011showsapolicy
shiftinspendingofMNREGAfundsby
thestate.Inthepreviousyears,the
governmentwasconcentratingonrural
connectivitybypavingruralroadsand
patchingupmissinglinkswiththehelp
ofspendinginMNREGAlabourfunds
releasedbytheUniongovernment.
Inthelastfiscal,thegovernmentallo
catedalmost30percentofthespend
inginMNREGAfundsforruralconnec
tivity."In200910,ruralroadconnec
tivityconsumed42percentofthe
fundsavailableunderspendinginthe
employmentguaranteeAct.Intheyear
beforethat(200809)41.8percentof
thefundswereusedforruralconnec
tivity,"anofficialwiththeruraldevel
opmentdepartmentsaid.
Thegovernmentretaineditsaverage
spendingof20percentonwatercon
servationandwaterharvestingin2010
11.Itincreaseditsspendingonreno
vationandrestorationofBaorisand
waterbodiesfrom16percentin
200809to19percentin201011.
Microirrigationandcanalactivities
wereallocatedcloseto6percentof
thetotalfunds.
Therecordsoftheruraldevelopment
departmentrevealthatthegovern
mentdivertedfundsfrombuilding
ruralroadstoplantation,landlevel
lingandlanddevelopmentactivities.
Accordingtoofficials,plantation
worksreceived7.6percentofthe
totalspendinginMNREGAfundsin
201011.In201011theCentrehad
allottedclosetoRs2,80,000lakh.In
200910,statehadreceived,more
thanRs5,70,000lakh.
http://daily.bhaskar.com/article/RAJJPRrajtakesnrega
routetowaterconservation2084438.html
RajasthantakesNREGAroutetowaterconservation|Dailybhaskar|7May2011
UNreporthailsNREGA,urgesothernationstoemulatefeat|TimesofIndia|11May2011
acommittedhighlevelbureaucracy".
ThesecondeditionoftheGAR,whichwas
releasedaftertwoyears,isavitalre
sourcedocumentusedforunderstanding
andanalyzingglobaldisasterriskandhow
communitiesworldwidecanbestrength
enedtocopewithnaturalcalamitiessuch
asearthquakes,floods,droughtand
cyclones.
Drawingonnewdata,thelatestreport
explorestrendsindisasterriskforeach
regionandforcountrieswithdifferent
socioeconomicdevelopment.
UNsecretarygeneralBanKimoonen
dorsedemploymentprogrammesand
cashtransfertomarginalizedsectionof
thesocietyasimportantstrategiesthat
havethepotentialtoreducedisasterrisk
andachievetheMillenniumDevelopment
Goals.Theendorsementofcashtransfer
schemetopoorwillcertainlyhelpthe
UPAIItowardoffanycriticismasitpre
parestorolloutyetanotherambitious
programmebeforethenextparliamen
taryelectionsin2014."Seriouslyaddress
ingdisasterriskwillbeoneofthehall
marksofgoodgovernance,"Kimoonsaid.
However,thereportcalledformore
transparentapproachtobeadoptedby
thegovernmentsinimplementingthese
schemes."Whereassuchlawsareimpor
tant,buttheydonotnecessarily
strengthenactualaccountabilityunless
theyaresupportedbypenaltiesand
effectiveperformancebasedrewards,"
thereportsaid.
EversinceNREGAhasbeenlaunched,
thegovernmenthasdrawnflakfornot
maintainingaproperaccountofhow
themoneyisbeingspent.
TheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral
hadraiseddoubtsafewyearsago
aboutthemisuseoffundsandhuge
unspentamountlyingidleinbankac
countsoflocalimplementingagencies
andNGOs,renderingtheprogramme
ineffective.
TheCentralBureauofInvestigationhas
startedinvestigationintoallegedmisap
propriationanddiversionoffundsin
Orissa,amountingtomorethanRs500
crore.Theagencyisprobingfunds
misuseinBolangir,Nuapada,Kalahandi,
Rayagada,KoraputandNabarangpur
districtsinOrissa.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/201105
11/india/29531994_1_disasterrisknregakimoon
GENEVA:Athome,thegovernmentis
facingabarrageofallegationsover
corruptioninpublicaffairs,butherethe
CongressledUPAIIwashailedfor
embracinganinclusiveschemelike
NationalRuralEmploymentGuarantee
Act(NREGA).
OnTuesday,theUnitedNa
tionsreleasedaGlobalAssessment
Report(GAR),praisingNREGAand
askedothernationstoemulatethe
programmethathashelpedempower
millionsofmarginalized.
Inapowerpointpresentationmade
duringthereleaseofthereport,a
specialmentionwasmadeofthe
NREGA's"effectivedecentralizedplan
ningandimplementation"anditsbene
fitsreachingouttomillionsofpoor
acrossthecountrythrough"proactive
disclosuresandmandatorysocialaudits
ofallprojects".InIndia,theemploy
mentprogrammehasalreadybenefit
ted41millionhouseholdstilldate,GAR
said.
India'spoliticalestablishmentandits
topbureaucracythathastocontend
withseveralcorruptioncasesbeing
investigatedunderstrictmonitoringof
theSupremeCourtcameinforpraiseas
theUNreportgavecredittothesuccess
oftheNREGAprogrammeto"theimpe
tusprovidedbystrongpoliticalwilland
Page20
Grassroots
Nonavailabilityofminibusesofthe
prescribedspecificationresultedin
delayinreleaseofgrantsbyGoI
underJNNURM





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http://www.esakal.com/
esakal/20110508/5123225217757439818.htm
60 | Sakal|8May2011
| NavbharatTimes|11May2011







http://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/
articleshow/8227924.cms
:





Page21
Grassroots
| NavbharatTimes|11May2011








http://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/
articleshow/8227924.cms
:




StatesnotsureaboutreceivingfundsunderMNREGAontime|EconomicTimes|12May2011
serverandsoftwareproblems,"saida
statelevelofficial.
In201011,thenumberofhouseholds
thathadcompleted100daysofwork
undertheschemefell24%to53lakh.
ManagementInformationSystem
(MIS),awebenabledsoftware,was
introducedbythegovernmenttomake
dataonNREGAtransparentandavail
ableinthepublicdomain.Thegovern
mentalsoseesitasaneffectivetoolto
monitorthescheme.
Thedataisusedasaparameterfor
releaseoffundsinthesecondhalfof
thefiscalwhichisthepeakseasonof
demandunderMGNREGA.
In201011,MISwasmademandatory
bytheruraldevelopmentministry,but
ithadtobedroppedinJanuaryas
stateswereunabletomeetthere
quirement.Theensuingdelayinsanc
tionoffundsledtostateshaving
around17,000croreinunspent
money,asonly60%hadbeenutil
ised,against76%in200910.
"Moststateshadreceivedthemoney
afterthepeakseasonwasover,and
theprimaryreasonwastheineffi
ciencyoftheMISanditbeingmade
mandatory,"saidanofficialinthe
ruraldevelopmentministryofa
southernstate.
TheperiodfromNovemberFebru
aryisthepeakseasonforthe
scheme.
Thesystemrequiresprojectand
workerdatatobeuploadedfor
around2.5lakhgrampanchayats,
6465blocks,619districtsand34
statesandunionterritories.Thedata
flowoftenleadstoservercrashes
andoverloading.
http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/201105
12/news/29536309_1_ruraldevelopmentministrymis
funds
NEWDELHI:Statesarenotsureif
theywillreceivefundsunderthe
government'sflagshipruralemploy
mentprogrammeontimethisyear.
Glitchesinagovernmentdeveloped
softwarelastyearhaddelayedthe
digitisedsubmissionofprogress
reportsbystates,whichismandatory
forsanctionoffundsundertheMa
hatmaGandhiNationalRuralEm
ploymentGuaranteeScheme
(MGNREGA).Theensuingdelayin
sanctionoffundsstalledongoing
workandaffectedimplementationof
newones.
Theruraldevelopmentministry,
whichcallstheseissuesteething
troubles,hascalledameetingwith
statesonMay23todiscussthemat
ter
"Thesystemwasimposedonuslast
year,butmostofthestateswerenot
abletouploadallthedatadueto
Behindtheshine:TheotherMaharashtra|TimesofIndia|2May2011
overshot deadlines. The Pradhan Man
tri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), which
promises rural connectivity, is one of
the few projects with an encouraging
progress, but fatigue has set in of late.
As far as power is concerned, a deficit
of22%in200910forced810hoursof
loadshedding in many parts of the
state.
"Since money for these flagship pro
grammes comes from outside, a sense
of ownership is lacking. Despite a scar
city of resources, it is tragic that Ma
harashtra fails to absorb and utilize
funds coming its way," said econo
mist Abhay Pethe, who headed the
study.
Appropriate planning is lacking . The
state spent only 44.78% of the funds
released under the Mahatma Gan
dhi National Rural Employment Guar
antee Scheme in 200910 . The failure
is emphasized through the plight of
Mahadeo Ghandare (45) of Parbhani
district,afatheroffivewhoworksasa
casual labourer. "We have been plead
ing to our tehsildar for work, but the
reply is that there is no work. I trav
elledtoBuldhanalastyearandworked
on a pondrelated project for three
months,buthaven'tbeenpaidyet,"he
said. At the mandated Rs 114.27 per
day, he should have got around Rs
10,000.
Thereport,submittedtothePlanning
CommissioninJanuary,paintsableak
picture about the situation in educa
tion and health. Be it schools, hospi
tals or childcare centres, the state is
running institutions which are hol
lowdevoid of manpower. As of
2009,statehealthcarecentreslacked
54% of senior doctors, 9.16% of jun
ior doctors and 50% of nurses. Also,
there are over 11,000 anganwadi
related vacancies. "The vacancies
have a negative impact on deliver
ables,"statesthereport.
The Centre is to blame too. Funds
often do not reach the state in time,
andiftheydo,failtoreachthebene
ficiaries. In the Midday Meal
Scheme, for example, funds were
often received in December, making
a complete utilization difficult before
the end of the financial year. "We
could learn from Kerala , which has
legislated that funds are to be re
leased every three months," Pethe
said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/BehindtheshineThe
otherMaharashtra/articleshow/8139241.cms?intenttarget=no
Pomp and circumstance marked
Maharashtra Day, Sunday, but be
neath the veneer of celebration is a
stark reality: the state is gradually
slippingintobackwardness.
A team of economists from the Uni
versity of Mumbai has evaluated the
impact of the central government's
flagship development schemes and
found gaping holes in the state's
performance.
Nearly half the budgets in key wel
fare areas, be it employment, food
subsidyorhealth,routinelygounuti
lized even as people in the state
struggle to eke out a decent living.
Shamefully, Maharashtra has joined
the ranks of five of the country's
poorest statesBihar , Madhya
Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh
and Orissawhere one in every two
children is underweight. Yet, it spent
less than 60% of the allocated food
subsidy for schoolchildren , failed to
pick up 15% of food meant for chil
dren from godowns and built
140,633 anganwadis (childcare cen
tres)lessthantherequirement.
According to the report, till 2009,
over 75% of urban infrastructure
projects,includingthoseinMumbai,
Childpovertyandeducation|EconomicTimes|21April2011
AmartyaSenhighlightedinhisLalBa
hadurShastriMemoriallecturemore
thanfourdecadesago,thesediscrep
anciesareembeddedintheprocesses
ofdatacollectionthatfocusexclusively
onthesupplyside.Theculpritsarehigh
dropoutandwastagethatbecome
determinantsofschoolfundingforthat
year.
SchoolenrolmentcensusisinAugust
followingthebeginningoftheschool
year(usuallyJuly)andexcludesthe
dropoutsthatoccurinpeakperiodsof
economicactivity,i.e.,sowingand
harvestingseasonsinruralIndia.That
mostofthesechildrenarelivingin
povertycanbeverifiedfromthe
demandsideofschooleducation.
Thesechildrenfacecumulativedisad
vantageofpoverty,includinginability
tomeetdirectcostsandopportunity
costs.Recentinitiatives,suchas
providingmiddaymeals,uniforms
andtextbookstoschoolchildren,
needupgradingandtimelydelivery,
particularlyinthesestates.

Adeclineof2.6millioninelementary
educationenrolmentsfrom2007to
2010,theyearsofSarvaShiksha
Abhiyan'strumpetedsuccess,needs
carefulanalysis.Enrolmentdata,
basedonschoolstatistics,dealswith
thesupplysideonly.CensusorNSS
data,basedonhouseholdinforma
tion,givesusthedemandsideof
schoolenrolments.Thetwoshould
roughlymatch,astheydoinhalfof
India,butnotforUP,Bihar,Madhya
Pradesh,OrissaandRajasthan.
Thisisnotbecausethesestatesdelib
eratelyoverreport.AsProfessor
Grassroots
Page22

Acloselookattheexpansionofelemen
taryeducationfrom200405to200910
acrossIndianstatesrevealsthatthe
largestexpansionhasbeeninprecisely
thestateswhichusedtohavelarge
discrepanciesintheirreportingofedu
cationalstatistics.Figure1providesyear
toyearchangesinelementaryeduca
tionenrolments,forprimaryandmiddle
schoolsforstatesthataccountformaxi
mumgrowthanddecline.Thepropor
tionofchildrenlivinginpovertyinthese
states(in200405)isabovethenational
averageofoneinthreechildren.In
Orissaitisoneintwo.Linkitwith
Pratham'srecentlyreleasedReportfor
2010onlearningoutcomesandfacilities
togettherealpicture.Themessage
thatsomeofthepooraregettingisthat
thecostsofeducationtheyhavetobear
arehighandthequalityonofferdoes
Notjustifythese!Surprisingly,despite
theunsatisfactoryqualityofschool
ingonofferinthesestates,about
70%childreninpovertydoattend
schools.Alargeproportionoftheir
teachers,however,maynotfeel
obligatedtodoso.IntherestofIndia
over90%ofchildren,eventhosein
poverty,doattendschools.
Ourestimatesofchildpoverty,based
onNSSdata,indicateadeclineof18
millionfrom199394andwas104
millionin200405.Concentrationof
childpovertyintheabovementioned
fourstatesthataccountforhalfthe
childreninIndiaisratherstartling.We
dividedhouseholdsintofourgroups:(i)
VeryPoor:householdswithmonthly
percapitaexpenditure(MPCE)less
thanhalftheofficialpovertyline,(ii)
Poor:HouseholdswithMPCElessthan
thepovertylinebutmorethanhalfthe
povertyline,(iii)NonpoorLow:House
holdswithMPCEmorethanthepov
ertylinebutlessthantwicethepoverty
line,and(iv)NonpoorHigh:House
holdswithMPCEmorethantwicethe
povertyline.Resultscomparingthe
averagehouseholdsizeandtheaver
agenumberofchildreninthesefour
categoriesofhouseholdsaregivenin
Figure2.
In200405,theaveragesizeofhouse
holdamongtheverypoorwas5.5and
2.6childrenlivedinit.Amongthepoor,
thehouseholdsizewas5.8,and2.4
childrenlivedinit.Amongthenon
poorlow,theaveragesizewas5.1and
1.7childrenlivedinit.Amongthenon
poorhigh,theaveragehouseholdsize
was3.9butthenumberofchildren
livinginitwasonly0.9.Ouranalysis
bringsoutadisturbingpatternofun
evendemographictransitionamong
thesefourgroupsofhouseholds
withinacrosssectionandalsothe
changefrom199394to200405.
Declineinschoolenrolmentsis
mainlyduetochildpovertyrather
thandemographictransitionorover
reporting.Policiesonchildpoverty
reductionneedtobeintertwined
withthoseforschoolingandalsofor
fasterdemographictransition.
Theinescapableinferencesthatthe
poorhavelargerfamilysize,larger
numberofchildrenintheirhouse
holdsandalsohavehigherdepend
encyratioscomparedwiththenon
poorhaveimplicationsforschooling.
Childpovertyandnonparticipation
inschoolingrequireanorchestrated
policyresponse.Itisnotjustasupply
sideissue.Earnestimplementationof
theRighttoEducationLawwould
havehighsocialaswellaseconomic
growthdividends.Shiftingtheannual
schoolenrolmentcensusfromAugust
toMarchwoulddispeltheillusionof
schoolingprogress,particularlyinthe
stateswithpoorschoolingout
comes.
TheauthorsarewithMonashUniversityandAustralian
NationalUniversity,respectively.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/policy/
childpovertyandeducation/
articleshow/8042937.cms
Childpovertyandeducationcontinued
Grassroots
Page23
Educationschemebudgetfor2011getsRs793crboost|HindustanTimes|16May2011
theyearbeforetheActcameinto
effect,wasRs1,213crore.
OftheRs2,870crorebudgetforthis
year,theMumbaisuburbandivision
willreceiveRs20crore,whichwillbe
distributedamongtheschoolsunder
themunicipalcorporation.
SchoolsintheMumbaicitydivisionwill
receiveRs20crore.Thefundsareex
pectedtobecomeavailableinJune.
TheSSAwillnowbepurelyforthe
implementationoftheRTEAct,said
anofficialfromtheeducationdepart
ment.
Variousotherissueswillbetakenup
thisyear,includingteacherstraining,
distributionoffreetextbooks,inclu
siveeducationschemesandsoon,
addedtheofficial.
ThenewbudgetsfortheSSAfor
differentstateswasfinalisedata
meetinginDelhilastmonth.Ofthe
statedbudgetamount,thecentral
governmentwillprovide65%,while
therespectivestategovernmentswill
contributetheremaining35%.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Education
schemebudgetfor2011gets793crboost/
Article1698061.aspx
Inasignificantboosttotheimple
mentationoftheRighttoEducation
Act,thestatesbudgetfortheSarva
ShikshaAbhiyan(SSA)thegovern
mentsmainschemeforuniversalis
ingelementaryeducationhas
increasedbynearly40%,orRs793
croreforthisyear.In20102011,the
firstyearoftheActsimplementa
tion,thegovernmenthadsetasidea
budgetofRs2,077crorefortheSSA
scheme.For20112012,thebudget
hasincreasedtoRs2,870crore.
Theannualbudgetfor20092010,
PANAJI:Whilethecorporationofthe
cityofPanaji(CCP)currentlyfacesa
majorgarbagecrisisasitlacksa
propergarbagedisposalsite,some
membersofthestatelevelsteering
committeeundertheJawaharlal
Nehrunationalurbanrenewalmis
sionaretryingtoputtheissueof
solidwastemanagementonthe
agendaforthemeetingscheduledon
Friday.
Whilethedetailedprojectreports
(DPRs)forimprovingwatersupply
(worth173.9crore)andseweragein
thecity(156.15crore)aretobe
takenupforapprovalonFriday,
somecommitteemembersaresore
overrelegationofsolidwasteman
agement(33crore)andStInezcreek
(17crore)tothebackburner.
Thecommittee,headedbychief
ministerDigambarKamatandwhich
hasurbandevelopmentminister
JoaquimAlemaoasvicechairman,
lastmetover10monthsagoinJuly
2010.TheJNNURMschemeitselfis
likelytoendinsixmonths.
Racingagainsttime,thecommitteewill
approvetheprojectsforsubmissionto
theUnionministryofurbandevelop
ment,sourcessaid."DPRsofsolid
wastemanagementforthecapitalcity
andanotherfortheStInezcreekhave
notbeenputontheagendafordubi
ousreasons,"asourcealleged.
TheDPRonsolidwastemanagement
hadbeenapprovedbythesub
committeeforimplementationof
JNNURMprojectsthoughtheDPRonSt
Inezcreekhadbeenstalledasthesub
committeehadraisedsomequerieson
it."Thequeriescouldhavebeenan
sweredatthemeetingitself,"asource
said.
Thesubcommitteeonimplementation
headedbyoppositionleaderManohar
ParrikarcomprisesmembersJoe
D'Souza,PatriciaPintoandNandkumar
Kamat.
ThispanelvetsandapprovestheDPRs
preparedbyprivateagenciesonvari
oussubjectsunderJNNURM.
D'SouzaonWednesdaywrotetothe
urbandevelopmentministrytoinclude
DPRsofsolidwastemanagementand
StInezcreekonFriday'sagenda.He
alsotookupthematterwithKamat
andParrikar,whoagreedthesecould
betakenup.
ThoughtheagendaoftheFriday
meetingprovidesfordiscussionon
anyothersubjectwithduepermis
sionofthechairman,sourcessaid
thatitwillhardlyleadtotakingup
DPRsrelatedtogarbagemanage
mentandStInezcreekasforces
withinthestatepanelarekeento
keepoutthetwoimportantDPRs.
Kamatclaimedhewasnotaware
abouttheagendaoftheFridaymeet
ingwhilePanajimayorYatinParekh
saidhewaskeenthattheDPRsare
approvedasthecityisfacingamajor
crisis."Thisisagoodopportunityto
availcentralfunds,"hetoldTOI.
CCPhasnowdecidedtoclearthe
compostattheTaleigaosite,which
thepanchayathasshutforusebythe
corporationfearingitwouldcreatea
healthhazard.
MemberswantJNNURMtotakeupgarbageissue|TimesofIndia|26May2011
Page24
Grassroots
SomeUsefullinks
KarnatakaLearningPartnership
http://blog.klp.org.in/search/label/government
12thFiveYearPlanPlanningCommission
http://12thplan.gov.in
SocietyforSocialAudit,Accountabilityand
Transparency,AndhraPradesh
http://61.95.132.217/SocialAudit/Login.jsp
DepartmentofPanchayatsandRuralDevel
opmentWestBengal
http://www.wbprd.nic.in/html/asp/g2csw/newmain.asp
TheInternationalBenchmarkingNetworkfor
WaterandSanitationUtilities
http://www.ibnet.org/
AndhraPradeshSocioEconomicSurveyRe
port201011
http://www.aponline.gov.in/Apportal/AP%20Govt%
20Information/APES%20New/APSES.html
WSPWater&SanitationProgram
http://www.wsp.org/wsp/
MaharashtraEconomicSurveyReport201011
http://mahades.maharashtra.gov.in/files/publication/
esm_201011_eng.pdf
PlanPlusPlanningSoftware
http://planningonline.gov.in/MainPage.jsp
Followingreportsirregularitiesinuse
offundsundertheMahatmaGandhi
NationalRuralEmploymentGuaran
teeScheme(MNREGS)inOrissa,a
multicrorescamintheruraljob
schemeisthreateningtoemergein
Jharkhand.AftervisitingBokaroand
Latehardistrictsinthetribalstateon
March12and
13,ahighlevelteamofofficialsled
byruraldevelopmentsecretaryBK
Sinhahassaidtheirregularitiesinthe
implementationoftheruraljobs
guaranteeschemeareofa
substantialnature.
InMarch,ruraldevelopmentminister
VilasraoDeshmukhhadwrittenaletter
toJharkhandchiefministerArjun
Mundaaskinghimtoinquireintothe
murdersofaMNREGAactivistanda
worker.
Althoughtheactprohibitsinvolvement
ofcontractors,theteamfoundthata
majorityofworksunderthescheme
hadviolatedthisrule.
Theactalsodemandsthat50%of
fundsunderthejobschemeberouted
throughpanchayats,buttheteam
foundthatpanchayatrepresentatives
hadbeenkeptoutoftheloop.
Thecentralteamdetectedexistenceof
fakemusterrolls,whilesomeprojects
werefoundtoexistonlyonpaper.
Hugeirregularitiesinwagepay
mentshavealsobeendetected.
"Wearecurrentlyintheprocessof
finalisingourreport.Thedetailed
reportwillbesenttotheJharkhand
government,"SinhatoldHT.
"Irregularitiesintheimplementation
oftheschemearespreadacrossthe
state.Crore(ofrupees)havebeen
siphonedoff,"allegedGurdeepSingh,
convenerofagroupcalledthe
'NREGAWatch'.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/Substantialfraudinrural
jobplaninJharkhand/Article1692161.aspx?
sms_ss=email&at_xt=4dbe50e7126f21b7%2C0
InternalControl,Transparency&VigilanceMechanism
StepstoaddresscomplaintsagainstschoolsnotconformingtoRTE|EconomicTimes|2May2011
entitlementsmaynothelpaddressthe
issue.Thereisathinkingwithinthe
educationestablishmentthatamal
practiceslawmakingdenialofentitle
mentsanoffencewouldhelpaddress
thesituation.Adiscussionontheeffi
cacyofamalpracticelawforschools
wouldhavetobetakenuponawider
scale.
Meanwhile,theministryhassuggested
strengtheningtheexistinggrievance
redressalmechanism.UndertheRight
toEducationAct,thelocalauthorities
serveasthegrievanceredressalagen
cies,whilethestatecommissionsfor
theprotectionofchildrightsserveas
theappellatebodiesatthestatelevel.
Atameetingheldlastweektoreview
theimplementationoftheActchaired
byHumanResourceDevelopment
ministerKapilSibal,itwasdecidedto
layouttheprocedurestohelppeople
accessthegrievanceredressalmecha
nismincaseofviolations.Ithasbeen
suggestedthatinformationaboutlegal
entitlementsofchildrenprovidedforin
theActshouldbedisseminatedwidely
beginningatthePanchayatlevel.The
stategovernmenthastodesignate
officers,whowillberesponsiblefor
ensuringentitlements.
Thestategovernmentwillalsore
quiretodesignatepersonstohear
complaintsundertheActatthe
panchayat,blockanddistrictlevel.
Ithasbeensuggestedthatdesig
natedperson,shouldbeamemberof
thestateeducationdepartment.
Besidesthis,itwasdecidedthat
informationaboutthesystemand
processofregisteringgrievancesbe
institutedatthedistrictandsub
districtlevel.Informationaboutthis
systemmustbedisseminatedwidely
toensurethatgrievancesarenot
ignoredbythesystem.Propersystem
ofregistration,willhavetobeaccom
paniedbyspeedyredressal.Tothis
end,itwasdecidedthatatime
schedulefordisposalofcomplaints
mustalsobeprovided.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/
articleshow/8137985.cms?frm=mailtofriend?
intenttarget=no
NEWDELHI:TheHumanResource
DevelopmentMinistryiscontemplat
ingstepstoaddresscomplaints
againstanumberofschoolsthatthey
werenotconformingtotheRightto
EducationAct.
ThenextmeetingoftheCentral
AdvisoryBoardofEducation,which
islikelytobeheldinearlyJune,is
expectedtodiscusstheproposal.
Mostofthecomplaintsoverthepast
year,sincetheRighttoEducationAct
wasnotifiedonApril1,2010,relate
tocorporalpunishment,collectionof
feesandfunds,denialofadmissions
andscholarships,qualityofeduca
tionandclassroomtransaction,poor
infrastructure,especiallytoilets,and
poorqualitymiddaymeal.TheNa
tionalCommissionforProtectionof
ChildRights,whichisthecentral
monitoringagency,isoftheview
thatthenumbersofcomplaints
wouldbemuchhigherifpeoplewere
awareoftheirlegalentitlements.
However,merepublicityordissemi
nationofinformationaboutlegal
Page25
Grassroots
SubstantialfraudinruraljobplaninJharkhand|HindustanTimes|2May2011
Raipur:ApostofLokpalhasbeen
createdonthedirectionsofthe
Uniongovernmenttocheckcorrup
tionintheimplementationofthe
MahatmaGandhiNationalRural
EmploymentGuaranteeScheme
(MNREGA).
OnkardharDiwanwasonMonday
appointedastheLokpalforthe
Raipurdistrict.
Aninvestigatingteam,underthe
chairmanshipofDiwan,willconduct
impartialprobeintoanykindofdis
crepancy,corruptionandscams.
TheheadquartersoftheLokpalwill
belocatedatthesecondfloorofthe
districtpanchayatoffice.
TheLokpalcanbeapproachedfor
anypossibleissuerelatedto
MNREGA.
Panchayatofficialsnotadheringto
normsofMNREGA,improperjob
cards,nondistributionofjobcards,
improperremunerationanddis
criminationonthebasisofsexare
someoftheissuesthattheLokpal
willdealwith.
http://daily.bhaskar.com/article/MPRAIraipurgets
itsownlokpaltocheckcorruption2072224.html
RaipurgetsitsownLokpaltocheckcorruption|DainikBhaskar|3May2011
Middaymealscam:VigilancetoincludemoreOrissadistricts|ibnlive|17April2011
AnupKumarPatnaiksaid.Whilethe
anticorruptionVigilancedepartment
hadalreadymadeinquiryinfour
districtsofGanjam,Jajpur,Balasore
andMayurbhanjandfiledcases
against25persons,theinquiryhad
startedinSambalpurdistrict.Cases
werefiled,amongothers,against
suppliersandsomeofficersandthey
wouldbechargesheetedsoon,he
said."Wewillfilechargesheet
againstthepersonsinvolvedinthis
caseverysoon",Patnaiksaid.The
DG(Vigilance)washeretoattenda
symposiumon"preventionofcor
ruptionvisavisRighttoInforma
tion"organisedatLingarajLaw
College.Itmayberecalledthat
Oppositionpoliticalpartieshad
demandedaninquiryintotheal
legedmulticoredalscaminthe
entirestate.
Berhampur(Orissa),Apr17(PTI)
TheOrissaVigilancedepartment
wouldincludemoredistrictswithin
theambitofitsprobeintothe
allegedscaminpurchaseofdalfor
middaymeal(MDM)schemeand
SupplementaryNutritionalPro
gramme(SNP)."TheVigilancewing
willconductinquiryinmoredis
trictsintoallegeddalscam,"Direc
torGeneralofPolice(Vigilance)
Page26
Grassroots
Indiaaidprogramme'besetbycorruption'WorldBank|BBC|18May2011
grammestoreducepoverty.
Embarrassment
ThiswasthefirsttimeIndia'smajor
schemeshadbeenevaluated.
TheWorldBanksaysthepublicdis
tributionprogramme,whichsoaks
upalmosthalfthemoney,has
broughtlimitedbenefits.
Itgivessubsidisedfoodandother
goodstothepoor.
Thereportsaysonelandmark
scheme,launchedmorethanfive
yearsago,aimstoguaranteegovern
mentworkfortheruralunemployed.
ButtheWorldBankfoundthatitwas
failingtohaveanimpactinthepoor
eststatesbecauseofunder
paymentsandbadadministration.
Allthisisembarrassingforthe
Congressparty,whichleadsthe
coalitiongovernment.
Itpromisedtoreducethegapbe
tweenthesmallpercentageof
wealthyIndiansandverylarge
percentageofpoorones,whofeel
excludedfromtheeconomicboom.
Thisreportsuggeststhathowever
goodintentionsmaybe,thedeliv
erystillneedsalotofwork.
AlthoughIndiaisseeingrapid
growth,morethan40%ofits
populationstilllivesbelowthe
povertyline.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/worldsouthasia
13447867
AttemptsbytheIndiangovern
menttocombatpovertyarenot
working,accordingtotheWorld
Bank.
Thegoverningcoalitionspends
billionsofdollarsmorethan2%
ofitsgrossdomesticproducton
helpingthepoor.
ButanewWorldBankreportsays
aidprogrammesarebesetbycor
ruption,badadministrationand
underpayments.
Asanexample,thereportcites
grain:only40%ofgrainhanded
outforthepoorreachesitsin
tendedtarget.
India'scoalitiongovernmentis
spendingmassivelyonpro
FoggingMachinesprocuredthreeyearsbackbyAgartalaMunicipalCouncilincurringseverallakhofrupeeswerekeptidle
Foggingmachineslyingidle|DainikSambad|3May2011
Socialaudit:Acorruptionslayer|Sifynews|15May2011
aloneeliminatecorruptionacrossall
echelonsofdemocracy?"Ifnot,"how
mustonetacklewidespreadgrassroots
levelcorruptionaffectinglivesand
livelihoodofpeople?"
Theanswersmaybelyinginsuccessful
initiativeslikemobileaidtransferin
Kenya,(asystembywhichcashaidis
delivereddirectlytobeneficiariesvia
mobilephones)orsocialaudits,in
Afghanistan(wherevillagerstracethe
moneytrailofdevelopmentalaid,
detectcorruptionimmediatelyand
holdtheirleadersaccountableforany
misappropriation).
Indiawithanintegrityscoreof3.3
(consideredoneofthe"highlycor
rupt")hasadmittedlyaverytough
challengeahead.AspertheCorruption
PerceptionInde,CPI,2010,issuedby
TransparencyInternational,Indiais87
outof178countries,indicatingaseri
ouscorruptionproblem.Atthemicro
levelendemiccorruptionputsaspan
nerinthedevelopmentprocessitself,
furtheraggravatingthematter."Of
theRupeespentfordevelopment
programmesintheruralareas,only
15paisareachesthebeneficiary",
RajivGandhihadoncesaid.Todayit
wouldbeevenless,consideringcor
ruptionintheformofbriberyhas
increasedexponentiallyinthelast
decadeorso.
Marredwithcorruption,thegovern
ancesystematPanchayatlevelin
Indiaisverydismalandcryingfor
appropriatepoliciestowardoffthis
scourge.Aglimpseoftheground
situationemergesfromarecent
governmentsponsoredstudyonthe
NationalRuralEmploymentGuaran
teeAct(NREGA).Itisthebiggest
povertyalleviationprogrammeinthe
world,withaCentralgovernment
outlayof40,000crore(US$8.88bil
lion)inFY201011.Thereporthas
unearthedlargescalecorruptionand
Amidincessantcontroversythat
continuestoriddletheLokpalBill
significantquestionsonhowtoen
suredownwardaccountabilityto
eliminateviciousandrampanthold
ofcorruptionatthemicrolevelare
stillnotbeingeffectivelyraisedor
discussed.Whilemacrolevelcorrup
tions,likea2Gscam,maybeharrow
ingfortheeconomy,itismicrolevel
corruptionthatimpairslivesofpeo
pledirectly.IfIndiaisseriousabout
containingcorruptionitmustnot
onlyconcentrateatthemacrolevel
policymakingprocessbutalsoraise
pertinentdebateontheprocesses,
structuresandpoliciesthatneedto
beimplementedatvillagelevelinsti
tutionstomitigateunbridledcorrup
tionthatprevailsthere.
Withoutunderminingtheimportance
oftheBill,themilliondollarques
tions,waitingforaresponsethere
foreare,"CanananticorruptionBill
Page27
Grassroots
irregularitiesintheimplementation
oftheNREGAprogramme.Insev
eralstates,authoritieshavebeen
found"misappropriatingcentral
fundsandthreateningworkersto
keeptheirmouthshut."
IfIndianeedsanyconsolation,un
stablegovernmentslikeAfghanistan
withalegacyofconflict,continueto
dominatethebottomrungsofthe
CPIwithascoreof1.1.Thatispre
ciselywhyitmakesaninteresting
studytoseehowawartornnas
cent,democracylikeAfghanistan
hasproactivelyintroducedstrong
initiativesintacklingmicrolevel
corruptionlately.Incidentally,Af
ghanistanimportedtheconceptof
socialauditfromnoothercountry
butIndia.Thistoolfailedtoculmi
nateintoamassmovementhere,
remaininglargelylocalizedinRajast
hanwhereitwasintroducedby
MazdoorKisanShaktiSangathan,
MKSS.InAfghanistan,however,
morethan900suchauditsin5
majorprovinceshavecreateda
nationalstir.
Thisremarkableinitiativespear
headedbyAgaKhanFoundation,
AKF,isnowbeingreplicatedcoun
trywideatthebehestoftheWorld
Bankandministryofruraldevelop
ment.Ithasbeenhailedforthe
significantleveloftransparencyit
hasachievedatthevillagelevel
governance,inashortashortspan
oftime,andmandatory,forevery
villageaccessingpublicfund.
"Initiativestostrengthenlocalgov
ernance,suchasthesocialaudit
program,willbekeyinhelpingto
buildamoderndemocracyinAf
ghanistan",saysJohnDempsey,a
legalexpertwiththeUnitedStates
InstituteofPeace,athinktank.
ItisironictofindanIndianexperi
encereapingsuchlargescalebene
fitsinaremotecountrylikeAfghani
stan.Itisatthesametimeheartening
toseeseriousIndianprofessionals
contributingtothechangingland
scapeofAfghanistan.SujeetSarkar,
regionaladvisorwithAKF,instrumen
talinintroducingtheconceptofsocial
auditinAfghanistan,claimsthatthere
isfarlesscorruptioninAfghanistan
todaycomparedtoPanchayatinIn
dia.
Whiledecentralizationofpoweris
essentialindevolutionofhighlevel
corruption,itinvariablyleadstode
centralizationofcorruptionaswell,
remindsSarkar.Theconceptofsocial
auditisanempoweringandparticipa
toryprocess,wherebythepowerto
holdthegovernmentaccountablefor
vanishingdevelopmentmoneylie
withtheaidbeneficiariesthemselves.
Citizensassembleinacommonplat
formtoscrutinizetheperformanceof
theirimmediateagencies(NGOs/
GramPanchayat)onwiderangeof
issuesfromthequalityofdevelop
mentservicesextendedtothebene
fitstricklingtothecommunity."It
fixesdownwardaccountabilityoflocal
institution,electedbythecommunity
andgoesalongwayincontributing
significantlytowardspromotinggood
governance,"saysSarkar.
Amongallthepeoplecentrictools
available,socialauditsprovidestake
holdersanopportunitytoraisecom
monconcernsandcollectivelylook
forsolution.ItissomethingIndia
desperatelyneedstopromoteifIndia
wantstomakeadifferenceinthelife
oftheordinarypeople.WiththeRTI
constitutedthereistremendous
scopetoadvancesocialauditand
otherpeoplecenteredtechniquesto
promotetransparencyatthegrass
rootlevel.AsrecentlyasJan2011,in
theMKSSprogramarea,anembezzle
mentofRs56lakhwasexposedina
socialauditofMGNREGAinTodgarh
panchayat,Ajmerdistrict.Such
excellentcitizenryeffortneedto
receiverobustmediasupportto
galvanizethemintomassmove
ments,spurringacountrywidecom
mitmenttoeliminatecorruption.
Butrarelydotheymakeittothe
headlines.
Withdiscussionsrifeonhowto
containthecorruptionconundrum
itisaperfectmomenttoassess
grassrootsituations.Specificlaws
andpoliciesatthemacrolevelare
essentialincreatingtherightenvi
ronmentfortakingprocessesfor
ward.Asimultaneouslyeffortin
formulatingandimplementingsys
temsandmechanismstofixdown
wardaccountabilitywillensurethe
issueofcorruptionisaddressedand
attackedfromallsides.
Enablinginstitutionslikenationals
bureaustotacklecorruption,strong
measuresagainstcorruptofficials,
anefficientjudicialsystemwith
speedytrialofcorruptioncases,
toughpoliciesandpopularizationof
egovernance,allwillcontributeto
preparingtheperfectbackdropto
corruptionfreesociety.Thefinal
actorsincontainingcorruption,
accordingtoSarkar,musthowever
bethepeoplethemselves.Such
processwhichmakesthelocalde
velopmentagenciesaccountableto
thecommoncitizenswillnotonly
yieldhighgovernancedividendbut
alsomakethesystemcorruption
free.Timethebiggestdemocracy
learntalessonortwofromthe
youngestdemocracy,totakeits
crusadeforward.
http://www.sify.com/news/socialauditacorruption
slayernewscommunitylfppQcgbhhf.html
Socialaudit:Acorruptionslayercontinued
Page28
Grassroots
TheSupremeCourtonThursday
directedtheCentralBureauof
Investigation(CBI)toprobealleged
misuseoftheschemes
undertheMahatmaGan
dhiNationalRuralEm
ploymentGuaranteeAct
(MGNREGA)in100vil
lagesinsixdistrictsof
Orissa.
AthreejudgeBenchgave
thisdirectiononapetition
filedbytheCentrefor
EnvironmentandFood
Securitypointingoutseri
ouslapsesandlargescale
malpracticesintheimple
mentationoftheschemesunder
theActinOrissaandotherStates.
Writingthejudgment,Mr.Justice
SwatanterKumarsaid:Theinvesti
gatingagencyshalltakeintocon
siderationthreedocuments,i.e.,
thesurveyreportpreparedbythe
petitioner;theCAG[Comptroller
andAuditorGeneral]reportdated
March31,2009andtheNIRD
[NationalInstituteofRuralDevel
opment]report.
Holdcompleteprobe
TheBenchdirectedtheCBItocon
ductacompleteandcomprehen
siveinvestigationandfileitsreport
inregardtocommissionofcriminal
offencesintheimplementationof
theschemes,orotherwise,before
thecourtofcompetentjurisdiction
forappropriateaction.TheCBI
shallalsoplaceacopythereofon
therecordofthisCourt.
TheBenchsaid:Otherirregulari
tiesorillegalities,apartfromthe
commissionofcriminaloffences,
whichhavecometothenoticeof
theCBIduringthecourseofthis
investigation,shallbesubmittedto
theChiefSecretary,StateofOrissa,
intheformofaseparatereportfor
appropriateactioninaccordance
withlaw.Theinvestigationshallbe
concludedasexpeditiouslyaspossi
ble.However,wewouldexpectthe
CBItofileitsfirstreportwithina
periodofsixmonths.
Cooperationurged
TheBenchdirectedallthedepart
mentsandtheauthoritiesconcerned
inOrissatocooperatewiththeCBIin
completingtheinvestigation.TheCBI
willconductafreeandfairinvestiga
tioninregardtotheimplementation
ofprovisionsoftheActandthe
schemesframedthereunderwithout
anyimpediment.
Takingnoteofsuchlapsesinother
Statesaswell,theBenchatthefirst
instanceissuednoticetoUttar
PradeshandMadhyaPradeshto
respondtothereportsofthepeti
tionerwithregardtoimplementa
tionofprovisions/schemesunderthe
ActinthoseStates.
TheBenchsaid:Keepinginviewthe
factthattherehasbeenpersistent
defaultonthepartofanumberof
Statesinfullyimplementingthe
provisionsoftheAct,wehereby
directalltheStategovernmentsto
fileaffidavitsstatingwhetherthey
haveacceptedandaredulyimple
mentingtheoperationalguidelines
issuedbythegovernmentofIndia,
withinsixweeksfromtoday.
Intheevent,theseguidelines
havenotbeenacceptedor
arenotbeingimplemented,
theaffidavitshallspecifically
statereasonsforsuchnon
acceptanceand/ornon
implementationoftheafore
stateddirections/guidelines.
Centreaskedtospellout
steps
TheBenchalsodirectedthe
Centralgovernmenttocon
sidertheentirematterobjectively
withintheframeworkoftheprovi
sionsofthestatuteandplaceon
recordofthiscourt,beforethe
nextdateofhearing,thedirections
ormeasureswhichitproposesto
issuetoalltheStatestoprevent
recurrenceofwhathashappened
intheStateofOrissa.
TheBenchdirectedthatallcon
cernedshouldstrictlyadhereto
andcomplywiththedirections
containedinthisorder.Wemake
itclearthatintheeventofdefault,
thiscourtwouldbecompelledto
takeappropriateactionagainstthe
defaultingofficers/officials/
authorities,itsaid,andpostedthe
matterforfurtherhearingafter
eightweeks.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/otherstates/
article2011696.ece
SupremeCourtordersCBItoprobeMGNREGA'irregularities'|Hindu|12May2011
Page29
Grassroots
Asmanyas29,621jobcardsissued
byBangaloreRuralZillaPanchayat
undertheMahatmaGandhiNa
tionalRuralEmploymentGuaran
teeActhavebeencancelledasthey
werefoundtobebogus,Union
MinisterforLawandJusticeM.
VeerappaMoilysaidhereon
Wednesday.
Reviewingtheprogressofvarious
UnionGovernmentschemesinthe
PanchayatattheDistrictVigilance
andMonitoringCommitteemeet
inghere,Mr.Moilysaid:Ofthe
totalnumberofjobcardsissuedso
far,theofficialshavefound75,379
tobegenuine.Onlythesearevalid
andtheresthavebeencancelled.
Manypartsofthedistrictcome
underChikkaballapurLokSabha
constituencyrepresentedbyMr.
Moilyandhencehechairedthe
meeting.
Pointingoutthat255villagesofthe
ruraldistrictwerefacingsevere
drinkingwatershortage,theMinister
saidthathehaddirectedtheofficials
tochalkoutacomprehensive
schemetomitigatetheproblem.A
teamofofficialsfromtheUnion
Governmentwillalsovisitthevil
lagestostudytheproblemandsug
gestwaystosolveit,hesaid.He
haddirectedthemtotakeupcom
prehensivedevelopmentoftanksin
thedistrictbyintegratingfiveCentral
andStateGovernmentschemes.At
leasttwotankswillbedevelopedin
eachtalukbysynchronisingtheRe
pair,RenovationandRestorationof
WaterBodies(RRR),Accelerated
IrrigationBenefitProgramme(AIBP),
JalaSamvardhanaYojanaandthe
MahatmaGandhiNationalRural
EmploymentGuaranteeActand
theStateGovernment'snewtank
developmentscheme.
Workonremovingsiltfromtanks,
repairofbundsandchannels
wouldbeexpedited.Suchmeas
ureswillleadtoanincreaseinthe
groundwatertable,hesaid.
LabourMinisteranddistrictin
chargeofBangaloreRuralB.N.
BacheGowda,DeputyCommis
sionerR.K.RajuandBangalore
RuralZillaPanchayatPresident
Bhagyammawerepresent.
http://www.thehindu.com/todayspaper/tp
national/tpkarnataka/article1992360.ece?
sms_ss=email&at_xt=4dc91f8c9a9a3b8e%2C0
Over29,000bogusjobcardscancelled|Hindu|5May2011
IrregularitiestoforeinMGNREGSworks|DeccanChronicle|18April2011
undertheMGNREGS.Rs218.44
crorewasspenttowardspayment
ofwagestillnowforvariousworks.
Duringsocialaudits,manycom
plaintswerelodgedbypeople
aboutbogusmusters,fakejob
cards,fakepostofficeaccounts,
absenceoftakingpicturesofcom
pletedworks,creatingrecords
withoutcarryingoutworks,useof
machineryforroadconstructionin
villagesandotherirregularities.
Stafffacingchargesincludeaddi
tionalprojectofficers,technical
assistants,computeroperators,
fieldassistants,assistantengineers
andothers.Recently,officials
foundmisuseoffundsinthename
ofeucalyptusplantationsinKo
digudlapadu,Botlaguduru,Bukka
puram,Gayamvaripalliandother
villagesofPamuruandHanuman
tunipadumandals.TheMGNREGS
chiefvigilanceofficer,MsJ.Sud
harani,recentlyconductedin
spectionsandfoundRs2.55crore
misusedinthedistrict.TheDis
trictWaterManagementAgency
projectdirector,MrA.Rameshku
mar,saidthatsocialauditwas
helpingtocontrolanomaliesasit
isacontinuousprocess.Headded
thatdepartmentwasgoingtouse
theRevenueRecoveryActto
recovermisusedfunds.
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/
cities/regions/nellore/irregularitiesfore
mgnregsworks032
Socialaudithasbecomeathorn
inthefleshofofficialswhohave
misusedfundsoftheMahatma
GandhiNationalRuralEmploy
mentGuaranteeScheme
(MGNREGS).Asmanyas50em
ployeeswereremovedfromser
viceonchargesofanomaliesand
noticesslappedon1,448persons
forrecoveryofmisusedfundsin
Prakasamdistrict.
Irregularitiesintheimplementa
tionofMGNREGSworksarecom
ingtolightasvictimbeneficiaries
arelodgingcomplaintsinthe
socialauditprogrammes.As
many5,68,169familieshavegot
jobcardsinthedistricttowork
Page30
Grassroots
MUMBAI:Municipalcommissioner
SubodhKumarhasdirectedassistant
commissionersofall24administrative
wardsandtheassessorandcollection
departmenttotakeatoughstand
againstpropertyandwatertaxde
faulters.
Civicofficialshavealsobeentoldto
ensurethatthetargetestimatefor
propertytaxcollectionsisdoubledthis
yearascomparedtolastyear'scollec
tion.
Thefocusthisyearwillbeonmore
watertaxandpropertytaxcollections,,
inthefinancialyear201112,inabidto
increasetherevenueby100%.Asof
March2011,thepropertytaxcollection
asofMarch2011asRs2,210crore,way
belowtheestimatedRs2,815crore.
ApproximatelyRs7,000croreinpend
ingduesisyettoberecoveredbythe
BrihanmumbaiMunicipalCorporation
(BMC)asofMarch2011.
Patil,deputymunicipalcommissioner
(taxreforms),said,"Earlier,weusedto
keepatargetwhichwasrecoverable.
Now,thetargetestimatewillbeincreased
asperthedemand.TheBMCchiefsaid
thatthetargetwaslowerthanthede
mand.Wewerealsodeductingthe
amountwhichislockedupincourtcases.
Untilthecourtgivesdirectives,wecan't
collectthosetaxes."
PatilsaidthatKumarplanstoutilizethe
revenuecollectedfrompropertyand
watertaxesformajorworksonthesew
agesystem,watermainsandstormwater
drainnetwork.Theassistantcommission
erswillplayanmostlyadministrativerole
toensurethattaxiscollected.
Alldefaulterswhohavenotpaidthe
provisionalpropertytaxbillswillbesent
notices.Thecivicbodyhopesthatattach
mentnoticeswillmakedefaulterspay
theirpendingbillsbecauseiftheyfailto
dosowithin21days,theirpropertywill
beauctioned.Oncethedeadlineforthe
paymentoftaxexpires,thedefaulter
willbesentaremindernoticecalledthe
noticeofdemandunderSection212of
theBMCAct.
Formeterlesswaterconnections,a
watertaxwillbeleviedbytheBMC's
hydraulicdepartment.
Intheamendedlawthatwaspassedby
thelegislature,undersection(212)of
theBMCAct,aremindernoticecalled
theNoticeofDemandwillbegivento
thetaxpayerafterthedeadlineforthe
paymentexpires.
Forunmeteredwaterconnections,
therewillbeawatertaxleviedbythe
BMC'shydraulicdepartment.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/201105
03/mumbai/29498492_1_watertaxpropertytax
defaulters
BMCbossdirectsstafftogettoughwithdefaulters|TimesofIndia|3May2011
ActivistsmellsaRs.1200crorescaminMumbaistrafficbooths|WeekendLeader.com|612May2011
CommissionerofPolice(Traffic)Prahlad
Shindehadinitiatedtheproposalforthe
booths.Heissaidtohavewrittenaletter
totheAdditionalMunicipalCommis
sioner,toinstallUmbrellasattraffic
signalswithreviseddesign.
ThePILnotes:InthegarbofRevised
designedUmbrellas,whathasbeen
installedacrossthecityareAdvertise
mentbooths,insidewhichnopoliceman
hasever
stoodto
control
trafficand
sincethey
areillumi
natedon4
sidesinthe
nightno
policemen
willbeable
tostand,becauseoftheheatoftheelec
tricallights.Thisisacleverwayofhaving
favouredanAdvertisingcompanyto
acquirespaceatthemostvisiblelocations
inthecityfornilconsideration,without
callingforoffersfromanyothercom
pany.
Abusinessmanturnedactivist,Chhugani
runsanNGOcalledPLEAD(Peoplefor
LegalandEmotionalAssistancetothe
Deserving).Myaimwastoorganize
educatedcitizensineachpolicestation
areatoformwatchdogcommitteesto
combatcorruptionbutmyaimremains
unfulfilled,sincepeoplearetooscared
ofpolice,saidChhugani.
Anadmirerofanticorruptioncrusader,
AnnaHazare,hestronglyfeelspeople
shouldactnowandfightcorruption
withfullmight.ThisstudentofLourdes
HighSchoolandgraduatefromSomaiya
Polytechnicalsohelpsalargenumberof
underprivilegedchildrenwiththeir
education.
InApril,theBombayHighCourtordered
compensationtoabereavedfamily
whenanelderlyladyfellintoatrench
anddiedduetonegligenceofcivic
officersandcontractorswhodigupthe
roadsandkeeptrenchesopen,acom
monsightinMumbairoads.Chhugani
hadfiledaPILinseekingcriminalaction
againstthem.
<http://www.theweekendleader.com/
Causes/472/Smellofascam.html>
SocialactivistIndurChhuganihasfileda
PILintheBombayHighCourtseekinga
CIDinquiryintoanallegedRs.1200
crorescaminvolvingtheMumbaipo
lice,MumbaiMunicipalCorporation,
andaprivateadvertisingcompany.
Thepetitionerhasallegedthatanesti
matedadvertisingrevenueofRs.10
crorepermonthfromnearly300
illegaltrafficboothsinMumbaihas
beengoingintothe
pocketsofanadvertis
ingcompanyandsome
seniorcopsandmunici
palofficials.
AccordingtoChhugani,
theadvertisementrates
onthesetrafficbooths
varyfromRs.60000to
Rs.3lakhamonth,
whereasthecostofthe
boothitselfisonlyaroundRs.20000.
However,theannualrevenuetheMu
nicipalauthoritiesgetfromthebooths
isallegedlymeagre.Accordingto
informationwehave,theypayabout
Rs.31160peryearperbooth,Chhugani
said.
ThePILsaysthatin2001,thenJoint
Page31
Grassroots
BBMPtoacttoughagainstSASfraudstersTimesofIndia|24
thosewhopaidbychequesthatbounced,commis
sionerSiddaiahtoldTOIonMonday.
TheupdatedpropertydatabaseusingGeographicInfor
mationSystem(GIS)indicatesthat11.58lakhproperties
outofthetotal15.1lakharenowintotheregulartax
net(since2008).
Thedelayedscrutinyprocesswillseeover3lakhas
sessedproperties(30%)randomlychecked.Thisin
cludes10%scrutinyforeveryyearsince2008.Theexact
processofscrutinyisnowbeingfinalisedbythecom
missionerandBBMPtaxandfinancecommittee.
TRACKINGEVADERS
Over3.5lakhpropertiescontinuetoremainoutofthe
taxnet.Majorityofthemarerevenuepockets,slums
andvacantplots.Overalakhofthemarevacantsitesin
newareaswithnoproperownerdetails.BBMPnow
planstotracktheownersjointlywiththedepartmentof
stampsandregistration.Thecensusworkandtheyear
endcollectionshaddelayedthisprocess.Itwillallbegin
soonafterMay31Siddaiahsaid.
TAXBULLETIN
May31isthedeadlineforextendedrebateperiod.
BBMPhasruledoutfurtherextension.Thereisno
reasonforit.Wehavealreadyextendeditbyamonth,
Siddaiahsaid.Theextensionduringthevacationperiod
hasseengoodresponseacrossthecitywithRs425
crorecollectiontilldate.
Selfassessmentscheme(SAS)wasintro
ducedtomakepropertytaxcalculation
easy.Now,BBMPhasfoundthatsome
citizenshavemisusedthescheme
undervaluedtheirpropertiesandpaid
lowertaxtherebydefraudingBBMP.
Thefundstarvedcivicbody,whosemajor
revenuesourceispropertytax,isallsetto
netitsbigcatchsuchfrauds.Themuch
delayedrandomscrutinyofpropertytax
returnswillfinallytakeoffanytimeafter
May31.
Arecentsamplesurveybyrevenueoffi
cialsusingGIShasrevealedthatmajority
oftaxpayerswhofiledfalsereturnsare
residentialpropertyownerswhohave
rentedouttheirproperties.
Wewillberuthlessthistimeandare
technicallyequippedforit.Strictaction
willbeinitiatedagainstdishonestproperty
ownerswhohavedeliberatelyassessed
theirpropertylesstopaylowertax.If
required,wewillalsobenotifyingallthese
propertiestoensuretheyarepublicly
identified.Thelawalsoprovidesforfiling
criminalcasesagainstthem.Incaseof
alarmingnumbers,100%returnswillbe
scrutinised.BBMPwillalsocomedownon
Page32
Grassroots
BangaloreMirror|13May2011
AssamTribune|
4May2011
Page33
Grassroots
RSVP
PravindraYadav,Director,LBDivision:pravindraY@cag.gov.in
MGanesh,DeskOfficer,LBDivision:aao3pri@cag.gov.in
Disclaimer:Newsarticles/photographscontainedinthisjournalareculledoutfromwebsitesofvariousnewspaperstoputtogether
news,informationofsimilartype.Thecopyrightofthesearticles/photographsarewiththerespectivepublishersonly.Nothingin
thisebrochureconveysanyofficialposition.Weacknowledgewiththanksthecontributionofmediaforbringingtolighttheissues
pertainingtosocialsector.
CAGinnewsrecently
DebtRiddenJKGovtLivingBeyondMeans:CAGReport|
KashmirObserver|19April2011
http://www.kashmirobserver.net/index.php?
option=com_content&view=article&id=7453:debtriddenjkgovtlivingbeyond
meansshowscagreport&catid=15:topnews&Itemid=2
CAGreportsetsoffalarmbellsonstatesfinances|Hindustan
Times|22April2011
http://www.hindustantimes.com/CAGreportsetsoffalarmbellsonstates
finances/Article1688215.aspx
CAGrapsMahaoverpoorplightofmedicaleducation|ib
nlive|22April2011
http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/cagrapsmahaoverpoorplight
ofmedicaleducation/658143.html
CAGrapsU''khandgovtforfinancialbunglingduringKumbh
mela|ibnlive|25April2011
http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/cagrapsukhandgovtfor
financialbunglingduringkumbhmela/661148.html
AirIndia'sBoeingbuyforced:CAG|Livemint|29April2011
http://www.livemint.com/2011/04/29004927/AirIndia8217sBoeingbuyf.html
CAGreportslamsAirIndiaformismanagement|ibnlive|8
May2011
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/cagreportslamsairindiafor
mismanagement/1516243.html
CAGshedslightonDSERTirregularities|DeccanChronicle|
16May2011
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/bengaluru/cagshedslight
dsertirregularities890