Dhamtari. The coordination committee meeting held on Tuesday at Dhamtari District Panchayat Office was full of uproar regarding the distribution of works from the funds of the 16th Finance Commission.
District Panchayat members of Congress Neelam Chandrakar and Kavita Yogesh Babar objected to 11 BJP members being given work worth Rs 40 lakh each and two Congress members being given work worth only Rs 10 lakh each.
She boycotted the meeting calling it discriminatory and walked out of the room. Neelam Chandrakar and Kavita Babar said that all the members have won the elections from their respective areas and the public has entrusted them with the responsibility of development works.
In such a situation, there should be no discrimination in allocation of funds for works. He said that all the members should get the amount equally, so that they can carry out development and construction work in the villages of their respective areas.
Congress members warned that if they were not given the equal amount, they would approach the court. The District Panchayat Office has received Rs 5 crore eight lakh for development and construction works under the 16th Finance Commission.
Regarding the distribution of this amount, a meeting of the coordination committee was organized under the chairmanship of District Panchayat President Arun Kumar Sarva.
In the meeting, information was revealed that 11 members were given work worth Rs 40 lakh each and two members were given work worth Rs 10 lakh each from the amount of 16th Finance.
On hearing this, Neelam Chandrakar expressed objection and raised questions on the District Panchayat President and CEO. He said that according to the guidelines of the government, all elected members should get equal opportunities and funds.
All the members have to carry out development work in their respective 35 to 40 villages. In such a situation, an amount of Rs 10 lakh is like a drop in the mouth of a camel for the development of the area. He alleged that giving more amount to BJP members and less amount to Congress members is political discrimination.
After this Neelam Chandrakar and Kavita Babar walked out of the meeting room and boycotted the meeting. Neelam Chandrakar alleged that before the meeting, she was called and asked for a work plan of only Rs 10 lakh, which included two works of Rs 2.5 lakh each and one work of Rs 5 lakh.
He said that if the distribution of works had already been decided then what was the point in holding a meeting of the coordination committee.
On the other hand, the district level action plan and recommended works prepared by the District Panchayat Coordination Committee as per the recommendations of the 16th Finance Commission were placed before the General Assembly along with the prescribed amount. Members discussed the proposed works and amount.
After discussion, the action plan and proposed works were approved unanimously. District Panchayat President Arun Kumar Sarwa said that local needs should be given top priority in the action plan prepared for the development of the district.
The development indices of Panchayats can be improved by making targeted efforts by identifying areas with low progress on the basis of theme-wise score of PAI-2.0.
He stressed on effective implementation of approved works and ensuring quality construction. District Panchayat members, officers and employees were present in the meeting.