Gram Sabhas to be held in 13,326 panchayats in AP today

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan on Thursday said they would hold grama sabhas in 13,326 villages on August 23 as promised during the election campaign. “Accordingly, we are moving ahead as per the plan with the long-term aim of enriching the panchayats," Pawan Kalyan said.

He said people in the respective gram panchayats should come together to pass resolutions on the development works to be taken up under the employment guarantee scheme in the villages. “As part of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), 87 types of works will be taken up in villages with an outlay of Rs 4,500 crore. Through this, a massive plan will be implemented to provide employment to a total of 54 lakh families by providing nine crore workdays,” he said.

Addressing mediapersons at his camp office in Mangalagiri on Thursday, Pawan Kalyan said Andhra Pradesh was the second State in the country to have started the panchayat system and added that it had been more than three decades since the 73rd Constitutional Amendment granted constitutional status to panchayats. “With the second generation of reforms, we are now starting the revolution in all directions of panchayats from our state. For the last three decades, panchayats have been given Rs 100 for minor panchayats and Rs 250 for major panchayats for organising national festivals. As part of the panchayat reforms that we are bringing in now, we have increased the funds to Rs 10,000 for minor panchayats and Rs 25,000 for major panchayats,” he said.

He said the great thing about the State was that every village has its uniqueness. “Our villages are unique to arts, food preparation, textiles, and other artworks. Flowers are famous in Anandapuram in Visakhapatnam district. Araku coffee has a specialty in Araku. Mangalagiri sarees, Lepakshi in Sathya Sai district, Vettapalem village in Bapatla, Chilakalapudi in Krishna district and Kondapalli handicrafts are famous. There are similar ones in all the districts. We hope to identify their specialties in the gram sabhas, decide and promote them. We will explore ways to create wealth by exporting unique products and food items that are manufactured. Youth and women should participate extensively in gram sabhas. I want women to participate more in panchayats,” he added.