CPI (M) for more financial devolution to local bodies

CHENNAI: Reiterating its demand for more financial devolution to local bodies, the State unit of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Saturday said allocation of 30 per cent of the State’s revenue to them was necessary to build infrastructure.

A resolution adopted at the special conference of the leaders of the local bodies organised by the party said the current allocation was 9.5 per cent and the expected increase of 0.5 per cent was totally inadequate.

Another resolution stressed the need for recruiting more employees to commensurate with the workload and development of the local bodies.

Pointing out that a major portion of the funds is used to meet the salaries of local body employees, the conference said many local bodies were not able to meet the expenditure. The conference also urged the State government to adopt direct election to the posts of municipal chairman, town panchayat president and panchayat union chairman, arguing that direct election alone would ensure fair and free elections.

Earlier, inaugurating the conference, Thomas Issac, Finance Minister of Kerala, argued that that the federal structure of India was not sufficient. Democratic decentralisation was the only way that would ensure the direct participation of the people in the administration.

“Democratic decentralisation is a vital piece in the administrative structure. It has many benefits, because local people alone know what they want and someone sitting in Chennai cannot decide what the people living in Kanyakumari want,” he said.

CPI(M) State secretary N. Varadarajan called upon his partymen representing the local bodies to become role models by functioning effectively for the cause of people.

“Your functioning should make the voters feel proud about their choice. Such a feeling alone would be a treasure for the party. It is not only good for the party but also for the country,” he said.

CPI(M)’s State secretariat member G. Ramakrishnan, Noor Mohamed and local body representatives elected on behalf of the party participated in the conference.

(Photo : Gavaskar Theekathir)