Giriraj Singh urges states to hold panchayat polls

Union Panchayati Raj Minister Giriraj Singh on Monday urged certain states to hold panchayat elections to ensure that rural local bodies there can benefit from the various schemes being extended to these institutions.Addressing the inaugural event of National Stakeholders Conference on Localization of Sustainable Development Goals, he also said the country cannot develop without the development of panchayats.

Union Panchayati Raj Minister Giriraj Singh on Monday urged certain states to hold panchayat elections to ensure that rural local bodies there can benefit from the various schemes being extended to these institutions.

Addressing the inaugural event of the National Stakeholders Conference on 'Localization of Sustainable Development Goals', he also said the country cannot develop without the development of panchayats. He emphasized having a master plan for all panchayats that should be prepared using the latest technology.

''I have another request...Some states have not organized panchayat polls due to which 47,152-gram panchayats are not getting the benefits (of various schemes),'' he said, adding he is writing to these states with a request to hold elections so that the local bodies can benefit from the constitutional rights conferred on them through an amendment to the Constitution,'' he said.

Singh did not specify the states where such polls have not been held. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat were present at the inaugural event. Speaking about the importance of transparency and accountability in panchayats, Singh spoke about the e-gram Swaraj app developed for planning, budgeting, and accounting of panchayat bodies. He also requested all stakeholders to join hands in achieving sustainable development goals and making panchayats sustainable. Speaking about the importance of open defecation-free India, Jal Shakti Minister Shekhawat claimed under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that India has achieved open defecation-free status in 2019, 11 years ahead of the 2030 timeline. The minister requested panchayat representatives to strive for achieving complete sanitation and adoption of waste management practices. He said it will convert waste into wealth and engender new confidence in the rural economy. Shekhawat also said his ministry is aiming at providing clean drinking water to each household in the country by 2024.