The Indian Express           16.11.2013

MC House meet on Nov 21 for transfer of villages

The ball has been set rolling for the inclusion of villages under the UT Administration into the Municipal Corporation. A special meeting of the General House of the civic body has been scheduled for November 21 to pass a resolution on the issue.

There are 13 villages under the Administration that are governed by 12 panchayats. It was in 2001 that five villages were transferred to the Municipal Corporation. Later, in 2006, five more villages were handed over. These 13 are the only ones left that are under the charge of the Administration.

The consent of the MC for accepting the villages has been sought by the Administration. Meanwhile, the civic body is likely to demand transfer of additional funds from the Administration for taking over the villages. Transfer of posts and staff would also be demanded.

The UT Administration seems keen on finalising the process of transfer as the elections for the panchayats are due. Before the notification of the elections, a decision on the issue is likely to be taken. Once initiated, the election process that will start in the first week of December has to be completed by the first week of January.

When the proposal for the transfer was mooted a few years back, it met with opposition from the panchayats. At present, with the term of the panchayats ending, there is not much resistance visible.

As per 2011 Census, Chandigarh has the second highest percentage of urbanisation in the country. There are just five villages in the city that are still in the category of rural area. This is being taken as a plea for transferring the villages. The issue is likely to witness heated debate in the MC House with the NJP having earlier expressed their opposition to the idea. The regular meeting of the House would be held on November 28.