No specific provisions for ADCs in State Budget ; ADC Members disillusioned
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, July 06 2015 :
Elected Autonomous District Council (ADC) Members have been greatly disappointed as no specific provisions of account has been made for them.
Talking with The Sangai Express, some ADC Members said that the State Government has been virtually leading the ADCs into a dark alley as the State's annual budget for 2015-16 has no specific provisions of account for ADCs.
During the previous term, the Joint Committee on ADCs lobbied hard to devolve full powers entitled to them under the Manipur Hill Areas District Council Act 1971 and bring about actual devolution of powers for several departments which was announced officially.
But all their efforts bore little fruits.
They even called on the Prime Minister and the UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi on the same matter.
The Manipur Hill Areas District Council Act, 1971 empowers the ADCs to prepare their own budgets.
But the budget for ADCs incorporated under Tribal Affairs and Hills Department as reflected in the State's annual budget is lump sum budget, devoid of any rhyme or reason, said the ADC Members.
The budget does not clearly reflect the amount needed for payment of monthly salaries to employees under ADCs.
In brief, the budget cannot define the functions and activities of ADCs.
During the previous term, ruling Congress party was in power in all the six ADCs but the functions/activities were restricted to laying of pebbles on some IVRs, distribution of GI sheets, poultry chicks, stinky bean saplings, de-clogging drainage systems under solid waste management and distribution of some solar lamps.
If one must talk about a little bigger job, it was construction of barrack-type quarters for teachers and schools buildings.
But the implementing agency for these construction works was MTDC.
Even as the ADCs have been authorised by the Manipur Hill Areas District Council Act 1971 to prepare budgets and annual plan proposals, they have been excluded from these processes, lamented the elected Members.
Whereas an MLA has the authority to recommend 200 beneficiaries of old age pension scheme, each ADC having 24 Members can recommend only 80 .
The annual budget tabled at the State Assembly indicated unmistakeably that the ADCs would see little improvement in the next five years.
Their conditions would only grow worse as non-Congress parties would be forming ADCs unlike the previous term where all the six ADCs were formed by Congress, they added.
This is one obvious reason for the formation of Hill People's Alliance by 18 independent Members.
Chief Minister O Ibobi and MPCC president Gaikhangam should ponder why the 18 independent Members formed a new political alliance despite the presence of a senior Cabinet Minister and five Congress MLAs.
Even as the State Government assured to devolve additional powers to ADCs instead of enforcing the 6th Schedule in the hill areas, its actions tell a very different story, remarked the ADC Members.