SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2024
When the sun rises over the fields, ponds, bunds, and sluice gates of Goa on Wednesday, Goans who will be voting to choose their representatives in 186 village panchayats, should say a small prayer of thanks for this festival of grassroots democracy being held in the first place.
But the holding of elections is just one part. How we vote, the mindset with which we vote, the knowledge we have of the powers of panchayats and the way funds and powers have to be devolved will go a long way in claiming the functioning of the panchayats.
You have to decide. Are you voting for the MLA who has backed your candidate or for your village?
By now there are no secrets. Goa with its incredibly small land mass with a cumulative size equal to less than 15-odd panchayats in the biggest States of India is a political battleground for Sarpanchas, Zilla Parishad heads, MLAs, and MPs. You see sights of the MP inaugurating a gutter and taking credit for the installation of streetlights, not to speak of MLAs. There is no territorial integrity not just in terms of size and spaces but also in functions.
The spirit of the 73rd amendment is being flouted without care. The amendment itself empowers panchayats as units of self-government. And people at the grassroots are not aware and allow the government to get away with this gross unfairness.
Spirit of Panchayati raj: Functional autonomy and adequate resources
How is this supposed to be done? By handing over functions carried out by State governments to provide “functional autonomy and adequate resources” to the panchayats.
But the exact opposite has happened. Ruling parties have, instead of devolving powers to the panchayats, made these institutions bankrupt, so that ministers and MLAs can have complete sway over them. The work of panchayats is being done by departments- from hot mixing to tarring, to distribution of fertilizers, installation of CCTV cameras, to road safety, and then extending even to the repair of bunds and sluice gates.
Some governments have progressively cornered the panchayats by systematically curtailing their funds in sharp contrast to many States which are models of grassroots financial planning.
The blame must lie squarely on the doors of the State government. The Finance Commission has increased allocation to panchayats, but the State government comes in the way and literally grabs a major part of those funds. And this is not just a Goa issue but seeing the small size of the State, the impact on self-governance is felt more here. As a result, fiscal decentralization becomes a pipe dream.
An article in Business Standard written way back in 2016, “For Panchayats, financial freedom is a distant dream,” makes sense even today because ground realities haven’t changed.
An excerpt from the piece stated: “State governments try not to devolve functions and functionaries to local bodies. They try to keep it with themselves as they want to remain a source of patronage and power” says Santosh Mehrotra, professor, at Jawaharlal Nehru University. “Of the 29 subjects that were supposed to be devolved, not much has actually materialised for reasons linked to the political economy,” he adds.
Herald, in its in-depth study in its Review section last Sunday wrote, “The State Legislatures are to consider the 29 subjects illustratively set out in the Eleventh Schedule for devolution to the village panchayats. The performance of every village panchayat depends on the extent of powers and resources devolved to them.”
Shamefully, Goa is the only State where not a single power has been devolved
Health, education and family welfare land reforms are a part of the 29 subjects that need to be devolved to panchayats. In 2020 Panchayat Minister Mauvin Godinho claimed, “I am fighting for giving more powers to panchayats and slowly. Devolution of powers will take place after the Zilla Parishad elections.”
Godinho had said, “Firstly we will give powers to the panchayats for the maintenance of primary schools and balwadis.” This turned out to be a hollow and tall claim as nothing happened after this.
From animal husbandry to dairy farming to poultry to soil conservation, setting up of small village-level industries like food processing to family welfare and health and sanitation, are all functions of the panchayat, not the Zilla Parishad, the MLA, or the MP.
It is time to reclaim our rights by beginning to understand them
People in Goa’s villages don’t have to depend on the largesse of the MLA or the kindness of the MP or the benevolence of the government. Year after year, day after day, governments have been doing injustice to people’s dreams of true self-governance by choking Panchayati Raj institutions financially and controlling them politically.
For that to change good and right people whose ambitions for the village and the panchayat are far higher than their political ambitions must be chosen. When you go out to vote, remember these elections are not a mini version of assembly elections. The purpose of these grassroots elections is far higher. Higher than power or politics. They are all about serving your village communities and taking charge of your destinies.
The decision to do good is in your hands.
