Harish Rao urges govt to release Panchayat Raj funds

Hyderabad: BRS leader T Harish Rao on Sunday demanded that the government release funds to the Panchayat Raj department, improve sanitation in villages, settle outstanding bills for former Sarpanchas and Panchayat secretaries, and regularise outsourced Panchayat Secretaries.

The BRS leader addressed a letter to the Panchayati Raj Minister, Danasari Anasuya (Sitakka), on Sunday. Harish Rao stated that as part of the comprehensive development of villages, the previous BRS government, led by K Chandrasekhar Rao, appointed 9,350 junior Panchayat Secretaries in 2019. These secretaries, he noted, worked diligently for the development of Gram Panchayats as per government instructions. He added that due to the timely allocation of funds to Gram Panchayats and the efforts of local body representatives and Gram Panchayat officers, Telangana villages had become a model for the country in terms of development. However, since the Congress government assumed power, the situation has, he claimed, deteriorated. Due to the lack of fund releases, the development of Gram Panchayats has come to a standstill, sanitation has worsened, and villages are now in darkness due to a lack of street light maintenance. He further lamented that tractors, provided by the BRS government, are now being handed over to officials because villages are unable to afford diesel or pay RTA tax.

The BRS leader listed a charter of demands and urged the Minister to address them immediately. These demands include: immediate release of funds related to Gram Panchayats; settlement of pending bills for former Sarpanchas and Panchayat secretaries for work already completed; regularisation of Panchayat secretaries working under the outsourcing system as Junior Panchayat Secretaries, as promised in the ‘Abhayahastam’ manifesto. He also called for special drives to be organised in villages during the rainy season to prevent the spread of seasonal diseases and improve sanitation. Additionally, he highlighted that sanitation workers have been facing severe difficulties due to non payment of salaries for the last three months and demanded immediate payment of their arrears.

Rao expressed regret that the salaries of data entry operators who conducted the household survey in November last year have not been paid until now. He insisted that their salaries should be released immediately.