The Hindu 23.07.2012
Concern over new housing plan guidelines
The district panchayat has expressed concerns over the
delay in completion of several housing schemes in the district in the
backdrop of the latest 12th five-year plan guidelines issued by the
State.
The guidelines, the district panchayat says,
do not have any clear mention of funding new housing schemes. The local
body will not be able to earmark any special fund for new projects till a
change is made in the guidelines.
District panchayat
president K. Jameela says the new guidelines issued to the panchayat
have totally altered the concept of local development. This will
certainly have an impact on poor income group. “Those who are halfway
through the construction of their houses will have to suffer, as
panchayats will not be able to grant them any fund,” she adds.
As
per the standing instructions, the panchayats will have to finalise the
development projects for the current financial year before July 31 with
the support of working groups.
Since the guidelines
have hardly any mention of such a major area, which has been in focus
for the last several decades, the panchayat is currently in a fix to
find other alternatives. “During the tenure of the last government,
there was the EMS Housing scheme. The issue could be settled if the
government was committed to introduce a similar scheme,” says Ms.
Jameela. According to her, the local panchayats in Kozhikode have been
continuing the custom of investing a huge sum of money to support rural
housing schemes for the last several years.
The
guidelines, which have mentioned in detail about the new powers and
privileges of the government officials in approving or disapproving a
project, too have irked the heads of various three-tier panchayats. As
per the guidelines, the District Planning Committee (DPC), which is
primarily a body of people’s representatives, has lost its significance.
This is because more powers have been given to government officials in
the Local Self Government Department.
“The grama
panchayats have also expressed their reservations on another direction
in the guideline, which does not allow tendering process of works below
Rs.15 lakh,” Ms. Jameela says. She claims that it will open the doors
for acute corruption and create a total mayhem in the existing selection
process of eligible contractors for works.
