Local Government

Local government is government at the village and district level. Local government is about government closest to the common people. Local government is about government that involves the day-to-day life and problems of ordinary citizens. Local government believes that local knowledge and local interest are essential ingredients for democratic decision making. They are also necessary for efficient and people-friendly administration. The advantage of local government is that it is so near the people. It is convenient for the people to approach the local government for solving their problems both quickly and with minimum cost. Local governments can be very effective in protecting the local interests of the people.Democracy is about meaningful participation. It is also about accountability. Strong and vibrant local governments ensure both active participation and purposeful accountability. 
It is necessary that in a democracy, tasks, which can be performed locally, should be left in the hands of the local people and their representatives. Common people are more familiar with their local government than with the government at the State or national level. They are also more concerned with what local government does or has failed to do as it has a direct bearing and impact on their day-to-day life. Thus, strengthening local government is like strengthening democratic processes.

GROWTH OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN INDIA

Let us now discuss how local government has grown in India and what our Constitution says about it. It is believed that self-governing village communities existed in India from the earliest times in the form of ‘sabhas’ (village assemblies). In the course of time, these village bodies took the shape of Panchayats (an assembly of five persons) and these Panchayats resolved issues at the village level. Their role and functions kept on changing at different points of time.
In modern times, elected local government bodies were created after 1882. Lord Rippon, who was the Viceroy of India at that time, took the initiative in creating these bodies. They were called the local boards. However, due to slow progress in this regard, the Indian National Congress urged the government to take necessary steps to make all local bodies more effective. Following the Government of India Act 1919, village panchayats were established in a number of provinces. This trend continued after the Government of India Act of 1935. During India’s freedom movement, Mahatma Gandhi had strongly pleaded for decentralisation of economic and political power. He believed that strengthening village anchayats was a means of effective decentralisation. All development initiatives must have local involvement in order to be successful. Panchayats therefore were looked upon as instruments of decentralisation and participatory democracy. Our national movement was concerned about the enormous concentration of powers in the hands of the Governor General sitting at Delhi. Therefore, for our leaders, independence meant an assurance that there will be decentralisation of decision making, executive and administrative powers.

Local Governments in Independent India

Local governments got a fillip after the 73rd and 74th Constitution Amendment Acts. But even before that, some efforts in the direction of developing local government bodies had already taken place. First in the line was the Community Development Programme in 1952, which sought to promote people’s participation in local development in a range of activities. In this background, a three-tier Panchayati Raj system of local government was recommended for the rural areas. Some States (like Gujarat, Maharashtra) adopted the system of elected local bodies around 1960. But in many States those local bodies did not have enough powers and functions to look after the local development. They were very much dependent on the State and central governments for financial assistance. Many States did not think it necessary to establish elected local bodies. In many instances, local bodies were dissolved and the local government was handed over to governmen officers. Many States had indirect elections to most local bodies. In many States, elections to the local bodies were postponed from time to time.
After 1987, a thorough review of the functioning of local government institutions was initiated. In 1989 the P.K.Thungon Committee recommended constitutional recognition for the local government bodies. A constitutional amendment to provide for periodic elections to local government institutions, and enlistment of appropriate functions to them, along with funds, was recommended.

73RD AND 74TH AMENDMENTS

In 1989, the central government introduced two constitutional amendments. These amendments aimed at strengthening local governments and ensuring an element of uniformity in their structure and functioning across the country.
Later in 1992, the 73 rdand 74th constitutional amendments were passed by the Parliament. The 73rd Amendment is about rural local governments (which are also known as Panchayati Raj Institutions or PRIs) and the 74th amendment made the provisions relating to urban local government (Nagarpalikas). The 73rd and 74th Amendments came into force in 1993.
We have noticed earlier that local government is a ‘State subject‘. States are free to make their own laws on this subject. But once the Constitution was amended, the States had to change their laws about local bodies in order to bring these in conformity with the amended Constitution.
They were given one year’s time for making necessary changes in their respective State laws in the light of these amendments.

73rd Amendment

Let us now examine the changes brought about by the 73 rd amendment in Panchayati Raj institutions.

Three Tier Structure
All States now have a uniform three tier Panchayati Raj structure. At the base is the ‘Gram Panchayat‘. A Gram Panchayat covers a village or group of villages. The intermediary level is the Mandal (also referred to as Block or Taluka). These bodies are called Mandal or Taluka Panchayats. The intermediary level body need not be constituted in smaller States. At the apex is the Zilla Panchayat covering the entire rural area of the District.
The amendment also made a provision for the mandatory creation of the Gram Sabha. The Gram Sabha would comprise of all the adult members registered as voters in the Panchayat area. Its role and functions are decided by State legislation.

Elections
All the three levels of Panchayati Raj institutions are elected directly by the people.
The term of each Panchayat body is five years. If the State government dissolves the Panchayat before the end of its five year term,fresh elections must be held within six months of such dissolution. This is an important provision that ensures the existence of elected local bodies. Before the 73rd amendment, in many States, there used to be indirect elections to the district bodies and there was no provision for immediate elections after dissolution.
Reservations One third of the positions in all panchayat institutions are reserved for women. Reservations for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are also provided for at all the three levels, in proportion to their population. If the States find it necessary, they can also provide for reservations for the backward castes (OBCs).
It is important to note that these reservations apply not merely to ordinary members in Panchayats but also to the positions of Chairpersons or ‘Adhyakshas‘ at all the three levels. Further, reservation of one-third of the seats for women is not merely in the general category of seats but also within the seats reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and backward castes. This means that a seat may be reserved simultaneously for a woman candidate and one belonging to the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes. Thus, a Sarpanch would have to be a Dalit woman or an Adivasi woman.

Transfer of Subjects
Twenty-nine subjects, which were earlier in the State listof subjects, are identified and listed in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution. These subjects are to be transferred to the Panchayati Raj institutions. These subjects were mostly linked to development and welfare functions at the local level. The actual transfer of these functions depends upon the State legislation. Each State decides how many of these twenty-nine subjects would be transferred to the local bodies.

State Election Commissioners
The State government is required to appoint a State Election Commissioner who would be responsible for conducting elections to the Panchayati Raj institutions. Earlier, this task was performed by the State administration which was under the control of the State government. Now, the office of the State Election Commissioner is autonomous like the Election Commissioner of India. However, the State Election Commissioner is an independent officer and is not linked to nor is this officer under the control of the Election Commission of India.

State Finance Commission
The State government is also required to appoint a State Finance Commission once in five years. This Commission would examine the financial position of the local governments in the State. It would also review the distribution of revenues between the State and local governments on the one hand and between rural and urban local governments on the other. This innovation ensures that allocation of funds to the rural local.

 74 th Amendment

As we mentioned earlier, the 74th amendment dealt with urban local bodies or Nagarpalikas.
What is an urban area? It is very easy to identify a big city like Mumbai or Kolkata, but it is not so easy to say this about some very small urban areas that are somewhere between a village and a town.
The Census of India defines an urban area as having:
(i) a minimum population of 5000;
(ii) at least 75 per cent of male working population engaged in non-agricultural occupations and
(iii) a density of population of at least 400 persons per sq.km.
 As per the 2001 census, nearly 28% of India’s population lives in urban areas.
In many ways the 74th amendment is a repetition of the 73 rd amendment, except that it applies to urban areas. All the provisions of the 73rd amendment relating to direct elections, reservations, transfer of subjects, State Election Commission and State Finance Commission are incorporated in the 74th amendment also and thus apply to Nagarpalikas. The Constitution also mandated the
transfer of a list of functions from the State government to the urban local bodies. These functions have been listed in the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution.