The New Indian Express 30.11.2009
Creation of new municipalities may take two more
HYDERABAD: Creation of new municipalities and corporations in the State seems to be a distant dream, at least two more years, as the grama panchayats were not willing to give their consent to upgrade their panchyats to municipalities.
With two-year term left for the panchayats, their surpanches are in no mood to forgo their positions.
If they give consent for upgradation, the Government will convert them into municipalities and merge them into corporations.
The Government wanted to create 60 new municipalities and five corporations in the State, to improve civic amenities in villages and nagara panchayats and special grade municipalities.
It has issued two orders amending the rules, which stipulates norms for creation of new municipalities and corporations.
By GOs No 567 and No 571 the Government has relaxed the norms by which creation of new municipalities and corporations will be possible. According to Order 567, a municipality can be created if a nagara panchayat or village population is between 25,000 to 40,000 (previously between 30,000 to 40,000), if the density of population is 400 per sq km and has market facilities and potential to attract industries.
Order No 571 states that if a municipality having a population of 3 lakh (previously 4 lakh), density of 5,000 per sq km, has industries, educational and medical facilities can be converted into a corporation.
Municipal Administration and Urban Development authorities have stated that Karnataka and Maharashtra have more municipalities than our state.
As the Centre is now focusing on the urban development and funding the programmes, the Government has decided to convert big villages, nagara panchayats and municipalities into bigger urban bodies.
Though two months have gone by, so far there is no response from the villages and nagara panchayats. Their term would be over by 2011 and its rulers want to complete their term.
The Government has constituted a committee to select the nagara panchayats, big villages and municipalities, which could be converted into municipalities and corporations.
The committee has to get the consent of the local bodies concerned to go ahead. According to sources in the MA&UD Department, only 10 have come forward to adopt resolutions of consent.
They might give their consent at the end of their tenure in 2011, when their terms comes to an end.
