Cong. dubs Cabinet decisions a poll gimmick

By Our Special CorrespondentHYDERABAD, JUNE 18. The Congress has described the recent decisions of the Cabinet to transfer more powers to panchayats, release 15 lakh new LPG connections and sanction new medical and dental colleges as ``a gimmick with an eye on local bodies' elections.''

Addressing a press conference here on Monday, the PCC spokesperson, Mr. K. Rosaiah, said the TDP Government had never responded to the Sarpanches' repeated demand for devolution of more powers during the past six years except the appointment of a Cabinet sub-committee.

The Government had suddenly woken up now and announced its decision to accept the sub-committee's recommendations and transfer powers to panchayats. However, it was silent on the issue of giving more funds to gram panchayats as stipulated by the Tenth Finance Commission.

The Commission had laid down that panchayats should be given Rs. 87.50 crores every quarter. But, the Government transferred Rs. 155 crores for the first two quarters (against Rs. 175 crores recommended) of last year and refused to release even one rupee for the remaining quarters. Similarly, it had refused to accept the recommendations of the State Finance Commission in toto.

Mr. Rosaiah said the TDP Government had systematically whittled down the powers of panchayats by asking Nodal Officers to conduct gram sabhas and appointing water users' associations and school education committees.

The PCC spokesman also questioned the hasty manner in which the Government announced release of 15 lakh additional gas connections without providing funds in the 2001-02 budget. If it was an ongoing programme, the Government should have specified the outlay in the budget, he added.

He recalled that when the Government introduced the Deepam scheme before the 1999 Assembly elections, it said only women in the rural areas would be eligible. Subsequently, as the Municipal elections were in the offing, it decided that the scheme would be applicable even to urban areas. Once the elections were over, it put the whole scheme in cold storage.

He refuted the statement of the Chief Minister that successive Congress Governments had neglected the development of Telangana. He said the TDP Government had not only ignored the interests of Telangana but those of Andhra and Rayalaseema as well.

The Congress leader charged the Government with brazenly commercialising professional education by sanctioning dozens of medical, dental, engineering and management colleges. The Congress, he explained, was not opposed to privatisation of education but wanted colleges sanctioned on the basis of people's needs.

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Section  : Southern States
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