Telangana State lagging behind in GPDP implementation

Hyderabad: The Gram Panchayats (GPs) of the State have fallen behind in implementing the Gram Panchayat Development Plans as they are yet to hold Gram Sabhas to approve the plans for the next financial year.

According to the reports of the Union Panchayat Raj department, out of the total 12,769 GPs, facilitators have been appointed for 1,502 and 1,080 Gram Sabhas have been held under GPDP scheme for the 2020-21 plan year.

The GPDP scheme is being implemented by the Union government to ensure comprehensive development of the villages. The GPs have been mandated for the preparation of the GPDP for economic development and social justice utilising the resources available to them.

The GPDP planning process has to be comprehensive and based on participatory process which involves the full convergence with schemes of all related Central Ministries and line departments related to 29 subjects enlisted in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution.

The GPDP which also called People's Plan Campaign has commenced on October 2 to prepare the plans by December 31, 2019 for the next financial year, 2020-21.

The campaign initiated under "Sabki Yojana Sabka Vikas" is an intensive and structured exercise for planning at Gram Sabha through convergence between Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs) and concerned line departments of the State.

In terms of completing the 2019-20 year's GPDP activity, the State is lagging behind. According to the reports of the Union Panchayat Raj department, 9,312 GPs have uploaded the plans to the related central government portal.

The reports say that no activity has been initiated being planned in 2019-20 plan year. No GP has taken up the works of transparency and accountability of expenditure of public funds. Under 'capacity building of elected representatives and initiation of discussion on employment generation' about 120 public representatives have been trained.

Though the State government implemented the programme in the name of Grama Jyothi in the past, it was discontinued. The State is lagging behind in implementation of GPDP as the officials have not shown much interest in it.

Under the GPDP scheme, the State government has to send officials of 29 departments to the Gram Panchayat level and ensure convergence of all the schemes meant for the all-round development of the villages.

The PR department of the State is supposed to bring departments like Agriculture, Education, Minor Irrigation, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, Libraries, Social Forestry, Marketing, Small Scale Industries, Health and Family Welfare, Rural Housing, Women and Child Welfare, Rural Water

Supply, Social Welfare, Roads, Public Distribution and Rural Electrification.