Think India Foundation

Nitish Kumar rules out rift among Bihar coalition partners

Patna : 

Chief Minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar, ruled out rift among coalition partners in the State and added that each party had its own ideology and agenda.

Kumar pointed out that though they have different agendas and identities they would continue to work together as coalition partners, and said :" The coalition has been functioning for a long time but the coalition partners have their own unique identity. The political parties of the coalition have their own agenda and they work in a particular direction. Their program or agenda remains in place." Read more

Source : www.business-standard.com

Congress to struggle in Bihar, Maharashtra, Delhi, UP: survey

Party will not increase its tally of 47 seats in these four states if the polls are held now, says survey 

New Delhi: If the national elections were held now, the Congress party will not fare well in electorally significant Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi and Maharashtra, a survey by television news channel ABP News and market researcher Nielsen has found.

In Delhi, which will elect its state lawmakers later this year, the Congress party is likely to win only two out of the seven Lok Sabha seats, compared with a clean sweep in the 2009 general election, according to the poll. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint

The four states together send 175 parliamentarians to the 543-member Lok Sabha, the lower House of India’s Parliament. Read more

Source : www.livemint.com

GMC election next month

Guwahati : Residents of Guwahati can finally choose their representatives to the Guwahati Municipal Corporation after a five-year gap as elections will be held next month.

The Assam State Election Commission today announced GMC elections in adherence to the provisions of the GMC Act and GMC Election Rules 1973. Read more

Source : telegraphindia.com

Bhubaneswar faces illegal temple demolition heat after Cuttack

BHUBANESWAR: Following mass demolition of temples on encroached government land in Cuttack, the spotlight has now shifted to Bhubaneswar.

Encouraged with the execution of Orissa high court's January 6, 2011 direction to evict religious structures on government land in Cuttack, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) have also started consultation for a suitable process to end encroachments in the name of temples. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Tamil Nadu government departments fail to use allotted funds, return 5,500cr

CHENNAI: Various departments of the state government returned funds to the tune of 5,520 crore on March 31, 2012. Forty-eight heads of departments of various ministries have surrendered more than 10 crore, according to the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report, which was tabled in the assembly on Wednesday. 

The biggest surrender has been by the urban development department, which returned 850 crore under the head capital outlay. This was followed by the general education department, which returned 475.11 crore and the police department, which returned 463.15 crore. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

CAG report slams 3 Corporations for shortfalls

CHENNAI : The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on the functioning of Tamil Nadu’s local bodies in 2010-11 has faulted the Municipal Corporations of Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai for failing to follow basic guidelines of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and prescribed prioritisation for the release of funds.

The report, which was tabled in the Tamil Nadu Assembly on Wednesday, was critical of decision of the administrations headed by former Chennai Mayor M Subramanian (DMK), former Coimbatore Mayor R Venkatachalam (Congress) and former Madurai Mayor Thenmozhi Gopinathan. Read more

Source : newindianexpress.com

UPA on media blitz to showcase its feats

NEW DELHI: I&B minister Manish Tewari on Monday launched a multi-media initiative with the theme 'Glimpses of the India Story' to showcase the achievements and highlights of nine years of UPA rule. 

The publicity campaign seeks to highlight the impact of policy decisions at the ground level for inclusive growth and participatory governance. The ad spots have been directed by Pradeep Sarkar of 'Parineeta' fame while the radio jingles have been written by Javed Akhtar and sung by Shaan and Sunidhi Chauhan. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Mamata vows to free West Bengal from debt burden

Trinamool Congress government is consistently asking the Centre to allow a three-year moratorium on interest payment on loan taken by the previous government

Kolkata : Noting there has been a 30 per cent increase in revenue generation in West Bengal, state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today vowed to free the state from the crippling debt burden which had been passed on from by previous government.

Mamata Banerjee

Banerjee said that the revenue had gone up by 30%, but regretted that only 30 to 32 per cent of the money had been spent on development while the rest went to meet the interest on the 2.5 lakh crore debt. Read more

Source : www.business-standard.com

Act like pro-reform activist, Kiran Bedi tells media

Chandigarh : Social activist and former police officer Kiran Bedi on Sunday asked the Indian media to assume the role of a pro-reform and pro-democracy activist in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. Addressing a seminar on the issue of Communication and Ethics at Panjab University, she said mediapersons must redeem their profession and play the role of an ombudsman over the media firmament of the country.

The seminar was organised by Chandigarh Journalists Association. Referring to recent resignations of two union ministers, she said, had the media been truly active, this corruption would have been exposed earlier. She regretted that the media is not looking at places where facts are being hidden. Dr Bedi exhorted media persons to see what unethical practices are going on in various organs of the media. The watchdog mechanism must draw information and support from citizenry. Read more

Source : www.indianexpress.com

Why Siddaramaiah is unlikely to change Karnataka

“Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right. Here I am, stuck in the middle with you,” goes the chorus line from an old 70s song. And stuck we were for the past 5 years of BJP rule in Karnataka, hapless prisoners of an asylum ruled by the lunatics.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah. AFP.

The memories blur one into another: from the gold-crusted thrones in the Reddy brothers’ living rooms to the severed chicken heads in front of the Vidhana Soudha; from MLAs held captive in hotel rooms to Hindutvadi goons storming bars; from Yeddyurappa‘s naked suryanamaskaras to piles of garbage gathering on Bangalore streets. And through it all, Yeddyurappa, unfazed and untouched, serenely bobbing from one mega-scandal to another, a saffron-clad zombie springing back to political life over and again. Read more

Source : www.firstpost.com

Opaque on transparency

AHMEDABAD: How transparent is your city administration? Does the municipal corporation involve the citizenry in the decision-making process? Two Gujarat cities - Ahmedabad and Surat - which were recently studied by a panel of eminent economists and urban development experts, as part of the annual survey of India's city-systems (ASICS), are among the least transparent and least participative cities in the country. 

Interestingly, a perception study of citizens of these cities conducted by the same experts found that Amdavadis and Surtis feel differently and rated their cities high on the transparency index. The experts ranked Ahmedabad eighth and Surat ninth in transparency and public participation. Similarly, Ahmedabad was ranked seventh on the political participation parameter, while Surat was eighth. The municipal corporation of Hyderabad was rated the most transparent, followed by Mumbai and Pune, while Delhi and Jaipur were among the least transparent alongside the two Gujarat cities. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Uncertainty shrouds Urban Local Bodies polls

Despite CCC decision, Election deptt yet to receive Govt’s nod

Jammu : Uncertainty continues to prevail over the conduct of Urban Local Bodies (ULB) elections in the Jammu and Kashmir as State Election department is yet to receive a ‘White Paper’ approval from the government to start the poll process.

Sources told Greater Kashmir that the Election Department (ED) has not received any official document from government to already overdue ULB polls from June this year. Read more

Source : www.greaterkashmir.com

Haryana Cong leaders to meet in Panchkula on May 14

Hisar : The Haryana Congress leadership would meet in Panchkula on Tuesday to decide the future course of action on urban civic body polls in the state. Jai Prakash, former Congress MP and district unit head, Hisar, said the party workers were ready for polls if the party decided to fight the elections on party symbol. 

Interestingly, chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had already made it clear that the party would not fight the urban body polls on party symbol. The polls for seven municipal corporations in the state are scheduled for June 2. Read more

Source : www.hindustantimes.com

Elections in Jharkhand not before Oct-Nov

RANCHI: As midterm elections are knocking on the doors, political parties have started preparing their agenda for the polls. Sources in the office of the chief electoral officer of Jharkhand said polls would be organized in the state latest by October-November this year, almost a year before the tenure of the current Jharkhand assembly ends in December 2014.

While the Congress, BJP and the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha-Prajatantrik (JVM-P) are planning to make corruption as one of the most important issues for the elections and corner the rivals, the Ajsu Party and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) are going to focus on development with emphasis on welfare of weaker section of the society. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Siddaramaiah's first task is a thorough cleansing of administration

BANGALORE : My post is not a bed of roses, says the Chief Minister-designate

Ever since it was announced that Siddaramaiah would be Chief Minister, there has been a steady stream of supporters and well-wishers at his house in Bangalore. Photo: K. Gopinathan

Chief Minister-designate Siddaramaiah, who will be sworn in on Monday at the Kanteerava Stadium, says his first task would be a “thorough cleansing” of the administration by taking the bureaucracy into confidence and speedy implementation of development programmes. Read more

Source : www.thehindu.com

Bengal govt to appoint administrators in Panchayats

The government has also said it will appeal against a high court order that directed the state poll panel to hold three-phase Panchayat elections in the state

Kolkata : The West Bengal government is set to appoint administrators to run the state's three-tier Panchayat system as rural polls are unlikely before the existing Panchayat bodies' term ends in June. The government has also said it will appeal against a high court order that directed the state poll panel to hold three-phase Panchayat elections in the state.

“There will be no problem if there is no election in June. We are taking alternative measure as per law. Development works at Panchayats will not get affected,” state Panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee said. Current Panchayat bodies in the state will be dissolved by June 10 with completion of their terms. Read more

Source : www.business-standard.com

Lessons for Akhilesh to learn from Karnataka

LUCKNOW: The Karnataka verdict has once again underlined the fact that political preference is largely made on factors likes good governance and trust rather than national issues and it is a lesson for the Akhilesh Yadav government that in terms of public perception it has yet to make a mark.

In great measure, the Karnataka mandate shows Indian voters' sensibilities. People were fed up with the BJP misrule in the state, with top law makers enmeshed in a multi-billion-dollar scam involving granting of illegal mining contracts costing state exchequer 3.6 billion dollars. Chief minister BS Yeddyurappa resigned and eventually ate into BJP's votes with his newly-formed Karnataka Janata Party. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

India reduced to a stumbling elephant

NEW DELHI - Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory - will this define India and its future? For all the talk of favorable demography, a huge middle class and likely impetus being provided by rapid urbanization and concomitant consumption, India is failing itself where it hurts the most - in the quality of governance. 

The eulogies reserved for India, even a decade back, seems to have been turned on their head as the global media space is awash with stories of never-ending streams of corruption (mostly from the government and bureaucracy) and severe attacks on civil liberties, especially violence against women. Read more

Source : www.atimes.com

Citizens expect better governance, infrastructure in Bangalore

BANGALORE: Be it Congress or BJP, citizens expect speedy development of urban infrastructure and a permanent solution to the water crisis. While some blamed BS Yeddyurappa for BJP's poor fate, others believed that Congress should work towards restoring the glory of the state as well as the party's own past tradition.

"KJP got a befitting reply and people have realized how Yeddyurappa took them for a ride. Verdict shows that people voted for a stable government despite being lured by free rice and laptops. Kannadigas are craving to see governance which was missing during the past five years. Politicians are not poor men, they should not corner properties and stash away money when they come to power but develop the economy of the state. Congress is capable of delivering," said B Ramakrishna Udupa, president of JP Nagar 1st phase residents welfare association. Read more

Source : articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Karnataka poll results: India Inc pins hope on a clean and stable govt

BANGALORE: Business leaders in Karnataka are relieved that voters have given their mandate to a single party, thus promising the prospect of a stable government for the next five years. Unsurprisingly, their main demand is good governance in a state which has been hobbled by instability and a series of scandals.

Ramesh Ramanathan, the founder of Janalakshmi Financial Services, remarked that there is an “overwhelming sense of relief” that a single party has won the mandate.

"This is a clear anti-incumbency verdict against corruption and political instability. The mandate calls for a clean and stable government," said Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, the chairman and managing director of biotechnology company BioconBSE and a leading voice for greater civic participation in elections. Read more

Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com

Why TN, Kerala are ahead of UP, Bihar in terms of development

Bangalore: Quality of governance and better leadership has led to southern states surging ahead of their northern counterparts, widening the gap in terms of per capita income and poverty between the south and north, says a study.

Per capita incomes in the south (Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala) have risen fast and poverty has declined in recent years. Reuters

Per capita incomes in the south (Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala) have risen fast and poverty has declined in recent years and the reason is quality of governance, better leadership and political stability, according to study conducted by the Public Affairs Centre. Read more

Source : www.firstpost.com

New scandals may put brakes on economic reforms

After riding high since launching economic reforms in September, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's minority coalition has been brought to a new low, with key ministers entangled in corruption investigations and Singh facing calls to quit.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

In the space of just a week, Singh's government has seen its economic reform legislative agenda disintegrate in parliament as opposition members have repeatedly disrupted proceedings to demand the resignation of the two-term technocrat and his law and railway ministers. Read more

Source : businesstoday.intoday.in

Municipal corporation fend for yourself, says UT

CHANDIGARH: Municipal works worth crores will be hit with the UT administration refraining from approving and releasing an annual grant of around Rs 657 crore as financial budget of the corporation. Most of these works are related to the engineering department, like construction and maintenance of roads and other projects.

The development comes in the wake of the failure of the Chandigarh administration to generate its own income, a lapse the UT takes seriously. The failure of the MC to generate its own income has repercussions for both the UT and MC, because it directly affects financial grants from the Centre under the JNNURM, Jawahar Lal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, for various projects and developmental works. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Rural Karnataka comes out in large numbers to vote

BANGALORE : Urban areas, including Bangalore, register low turnout

ENTHUSIASTIC: Senior citizens arrive in a bullock cart to cast their votes at Tegur near Chikmagalur on Sunday.

While 70.23 per cent of the electorate exercised its franchise on Sunday across Karnataka, urban areas, including Bangalore, registered lower turnout compared to the rest. The average turnout in Bangalore Urban district was 52.83 per cent.

Districts in north and coastal Karnataka witnessed turnouts ranging from 73.92 per cent in Dakshina Kannada to 62.92 per cent in Raichur district. Extremely hot weather conditions in northern Karnataka appear to have dissuaded many from coming out to vote. Read more

Source : www.thehindu.com

Elections are unlikely to change Karnataka’s vote-bank politics and misgovernance

The political campaign in Karnataka is reaching its climax, with voting for the state assembly scheduled for May 5, 2013. The state, first to privatise higher education in the country, is home to leading technology companies, supports an ambitious health care industry, is rich in mining and endowed with a climate that is conducive to horticulture and sericulture. Its business leaders are icons who inspire people to reach their true potential. Unfortunately, politics in the state is mired in backwardness.

That reality is reflected in the manifestos of political parties. Rather than promising to bring about clean politics and outlining plans to develop industries and create jobs, all of them have indulged in old-style politics. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

No one to head UP government as CM, ministers away on foreign trip

LUCKNOW: Who is the political boss in Uttar Pradesh these days? While Akhilesh Yadav has extended his foreign trip and has gone to London, his senior cabinet colleagues, urban development minister Azam Khan and public works department (PWD) minister and uncle Shivpal Yadav, have flown off to South Africa to attend the wedding of a state industrialist's son. 

Azam Khan, who was detained at the Boston airport, returned from the US on April 29, only to go to South Africa the next day. 

Azam Khan, who was detained at the Boston airport, returned from the US on April 29, only to go to South Africa the next day. Shiv Pal, who was looking after the state in the absence of Akhilesh too joined Azam to fly to South Africa. Another state minister, Rajendra Rana, has also gone to South Africa. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Nitish on another round of 'seva yatra' to test governance

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday started a 'sewa yatra' to verify development work on the ground and review functioning of government offices and schools in districts. 

Asked if the yatra had political purpose, the Chief Minister said he was concerned with governance and there was no political purpose behind it. Read more

Source : zeenews.india.com 

All departments to be linked with IT system in Bhopal

BHOPAL: A workshop on state portal and state service delivery gateway project under National e-Governance Scheme for using information technology to provide services to people promptly, transparently and conveniently was held here on Tuesday. Secretary IT Hari Ranjan Rao, deputy secretary Sudhir Kumar Kochar, a number of heads and nodal IT officers of departments attended the meeting. 

It was informed at the workshop that citizens will be provided information and public services at their nearest public facilitation centre. Citizens will have to visit government offices sparingly for delivery of public service. This portal also encompasses information regarding various sectors in Madhya Pradesh where government departments are delivering services. Through it, citizens can use public service both online and offline. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

J&K opens new data centre

The State of Jammu and Kashmir in India inaugurated a new data centre to support state e-governance initiatives.

The data centre was set up by the IT Department of the state government, as part of the National e-Governance Plan of India (NeGP). It was inaugurated by Feroz Ahmed Khan, Minister of State for Information Technology. Read more

Source : www.futuregov.asia

5 lakh jobs by 2015 in cyber security

BANGALORE: India will require five lakh cyber security professionals by 2015 to support its fast growing internet economy as per an estimate by the Union ministry of information technology. These jobs will come up across industries. The financial sector alone is expected to hire over 2 lakh people while telcos, utility sectors, power, oil & gas, airlines, government (law & order and egovernance ) will hire the rest. 

A large number of these jobs will be around cyber policing and ethical hacking, to check for network vulnerabilities . The need for cyber experts has grown exponentially as the country is heading towards an internet explosion mostly fuelled by e-commerce, e-banking , egovernance and the social media. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Gram Swaraj Abhiyan launched in Sikkim

GANGTOK : A ‘Sikkim Gram Swaraj Abhiyan’ has been launched by the State government seeking to enable Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) here to function as a mother organization, strengthening egovernance and  diversifying avenues for revenue generation.

The ‘Sikkim Gram Swaraj Abhiyan’ is one of the three missions announced the Budget 2013-14 passed on April 27 by the Assembly. Read more

Source : isikkim.com

India Govt Slammed as ‘Most Corrupt’ Since Independence

New Delhi. India’s opposition called the government the “most corrupt since independence” on Tuesday as a row over political interference in a police probe escalated in the Supreme Court.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, center, walks with Minister of Urban Development Kamal Nath as he arrives at Parliament in New Delhi on April 22, 2013. (AFP Photo/Prakash Singh)

The top court rebuked the nominally independent Central Bureau of Investigation for showing the government a report on its investigation into alleged corruption in coal mine allotments. Read more

Source : www.thejakartaglobe.com

K'taka Polls: Money, alcohol flow freely in Bangalore slums

Bangalore : Come elections, slums spread across India's IT hub wear festive look. As state is all set to vote for Karnataka Assembly Elections 2013 slated on May 5, money, freebies and alcohol are flowing freely in the slum areas of the city.

Slum-dwellers have suddenly become much sought after by political parties of all hues with loads of cash to lure them to election rallies. Many of the slum dwellers openly admitted that their vote would go to those doling out more money. Read more

Source : news.oneindia.in

‘Development’ rattles Malleshwaram - the peace-abode

How has the incumbent MLA performed? What are the key issues in Malleshwaram Assembly Constituency in this election? Who are the candidates this time?

Incumbent MLA and his performance

Malleshwaram is a peaceful old locality in the city, the central part of which is filled with age-old buildings like IISc, CV Raman’s house, MLA School and many old houses. Central Malleshwaram has BJP and KJP state offices. Among popular personalities in the constituency are Sudharani (film actress), Ananth Nag (film actor) and Vimala Rangachar (president of Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat).

This strong-hold of Janata Dal had catapulted the BJP to MLA’s chair, following the wave of sympathy for the Yeddyurappa-led BJP soon after Kumaraswamy burned bridges with the BJP and state went to polls again. Read more

Source : bangalore.citizenmatters.in

Urban decentralization: the forsaken opportunity

Twenty years after constitutional amendment, devolution of powers to local bodies remains India’s greatest forsaken governance opportunity

The central government’s Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission introduced conditionalities that mandated states to energise their urban local governments by setting up institutions for people’s participation in urban governance. Photo: Mint

When India liberalized its economy in the early 1990s, it also amended its constitution to provide for decentralized elected local governments. Sadly, 20 years later, devolution of powers to panchayats, municipalities and city corporations remains India’s greatest forsaken governance opportunity.

There is one glaring flaw in the 74th amendment, which deals with urban local governments, compared with their rural counterparts. In rural areas, every voter automatically becomes a member of the constitutionally mandated gram sabha, the primary citizens’ participation forum in governance. There is no institution on the urban side comparable to the gram sabha. The 74th amendment mandates the creation of wards committees, but leaves it to the states to determine their composition. Most states have not constituted these committees, a long-standing violation of the constitutional mandate. Where they have been constituted, they are typically formed through nominations, usually of favourites of the local councillor or member of the legislative assembly. Read more

Source : www.livemint.com

Chidambaram's race to reform Indian economy runs into political hurdles

NEW DELHI: Chidambaram is increasingly spoken of as a future prime minister if the Congress party retains power, although he denies any such ambition.

India's Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram speaks during an interview with Reuters in Tokyo in this April 2, 2013. PHOTO: REUTERS

While the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has agreed in principle on land reform, it has refused to back the insurance bill, and with national elections due by May 2014, it is not in a mood to compromise. Read more

Source : tribune.com.pk

Development given the go-by in Karnataka: PM

HUBLI : Taking on the BJP Government in Karnataka, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today charged that “bad governance” and “corruption” had slackened the State’s progress and a sense of insecurity was prevalent among the minorities.

Hitting the campaign trail for the May 5 Assembly polls here, Singh said the BJP had changed three Chief Ministers in the last five years and a probe had been ordered against several of its politicians on charges of corruption. Read more

Source : www.thehindubusinessline.com

State finance panel for more grants to Haryana local bodies

Chandigarh : The fourth State Finance Commission Friday recommended further grants for Haryana urban and rural local bodies through global sharing of state tax revenues.

The Commission recommended financial devolution of Rs 442.21 crore for Panchayati Raj Institutions and Rs 238.11 crore for Urban Local Bodies for the 2013-14 fiscal. Read more

Source : www.indianexpress.com

State finance panel for more grants to Haryana local bodies

Chandigarh : The fourth State Finance Commission Friday recommended further grants for Haryana urban and rural local bodies through global sharing of state tax revenues.

The Commission recommended financial devolution of Rs 442.21 crore for Panchayati Raj Institutions and Rs 238.11 crore for Urban Local Bodies for the 2013-14 fiscal. Read more

Source : www.indianexpress.com

Maharashtra govt bets on cloud computing to speed up services

MUMBAI -- The Maharashtra government is in the process of implementing cloud computing solutions in a bid to strengthen e-governance in the state while providing citizens services speedily and instantly, wherever feasible.

Dubbed MahaGov Cloud, the state government will provide cloud-based services to state departments and corporations in partnership with companies such as VMware Inc. and Microsoft India Pvt. Ltd. Critics pointed to the need for safeguards on security and privacy issues and also said that the government should have chosen open-source cloud technologies rather than proprietary ones. Read more

Source : investing.businessweek.com

Nothing much to cheer for women in Karnataka polls

BANGALORE: Women have little to cheer these assembly polls in Karnataka. 

Despite being headed by a woman, Congress has given ticket to just 11 women, while JD(S) and Congress have given 12 and seven tickets respectively. The situation wasn't any better in 2008, when the BJP, JD(S) and BSP had fielded 10 women each, while Congress had offered a chance to 11 women. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

J-K gets State Data Centre for e-governance

Jammu : Jammu and Kashmir today got a State Data Centre (SDC) for supporting e-Governance initiatives in the state. 

Inaugurating the SDC today, minister of state for Information Technology Feroz Ahmed Khan said, "we have setup a SDC for supporting e-Governance initiatives in Jammu and Kashmir. The centre has been setup by the IT department under the National e-Governance plan (NeGP)." Read more

Source : www.business-standard.com

MC's poverty alleviation cell awarded

CHANDIGARH: On the occasion of HUDCO Day(Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited) on April 25, State Urban Poverty Alleviation Cell of the Chandigarh municipal corporation was chosen for the Best Practices Award 2012-13 in the category of urban poverty alleviation, environment and infrastructure.

The award was given by Arun Kumar Mishra, secretary ministry of housing and urban poverty alleviation at Indian Habitat Centre, New Delhi, on Thursday. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Sikkim seeks to extend anti-defection law

GANGTOK : An amendment bill concerning the anti-defection law was introduced in the Sikkim Legislative Assembly today. It has proposed to bring members of the municipalities under its purview.

The state Urban Development Minister, Mr D B Thapa, moved the bill in the Assembly. It has proposed an amendment in the Section 18 of the Sikkim Municipalities Act, 2007. Read more

Source : www.thestatesman.net

Incomplete devolution of power cause for inefficient local bodies: panel

Mani Shankar Aiyar-led committee criticizes centre; says careful delineation of functions, roles, finances needed

A committee on local self governance in India criticizes the central government for incomplete devolution of powers to panchayats and urban local bodies. Photo: Hindustan Times

New Delhi: A report looking into the deficiencies of local self governance in India has faulted the central government for incomplete devolution of powers to panchayats and urban local bodies two decades after Parliament recognised them as constitutional blocs for transferring democracy to the grassroots.

Mani Shankar Aiyar, former Union minister for panchayati raj and chairman of the committee that prepared the report, told reporters on Tuesday that India had come a long way since 24 April 1993 when the 73rd and 74rth amendments to the constitution were notified, recognizing the roles of panchayats and municipalities at the village, block and district levels and town and city levels, respectively, in the devolution of democracy and power to the people. Read more

Source : www.livemint.com

Tripura, Kerala open the door for women in panchayats

The experience of Kerala and Tripura shows how panchayati raj can help in the empowerment of women

 

Women employed by Subicsha, a company set up by the Perambra block panchayat in Kozhikode that markets the products of 522 self-help groups in the area. Photo: Vivek R Nair/Mint

Chulubari (Tripura)/Kanjikuzhy (Kerala): Her relatives warned Hena Das, a resident of Chulubari in Tripura, against taking up political office because it wasn’t “meant for women”.

Das disregarded the warnings. Two years on, she has no regrets. She also has no male colleagues; her fellow representatives on the board of an 12-member panchayat are all women. Read more

Source : www.livemint.com

Nitish Kumar's Bihar Model Better Than Narendra Modi’s Gujarat: BJP Minister

PATNA: A BJP minister in the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government has lauded the 'Nitish model' of development, saying it is better than the Gujarat model. It has triggered speculation that the minister and some more MLAs may be willing to switch sides in the event of a split in the JD(U)-BJP alliance.

Speculation rife the minister & some more MLAs may be willing to switch sides to Nitish's in event of a split with JD(U).

"Even before Modiji assumed the mantle of governance, Gujarat was already a developed state. On the other hand Nitishji took over from scratch but managed to script a turnaround story in Bihar. Compared to Gujarat, the Bihar model is much better and is receiving plaudits from within the country and beyond," tourism minister Sunil Kumar Pintu said. Read more

Source : economictimes.indiatimes.com

PCMC launches 10-point reform programme booklet

PUNE: Stressing on the need for administrative reforms, the director general of Yashwant rao Chavan Academy of Development Administration (Yashada), Sanjay Chahande, said on Thursday that civic bodies should give importance to income generation as their existence depends on it. Various administrations all over the world have progressed, but the country still does not consider reforms important, he added.

Chahande along with municipal commissioner Shrikhar Pardeshi and Pimpri Chinchwad mayor Mohini Lande graced the occasion of a booklet release which lists a 10-point programme of the Pimpri Chinchwad municipal corporation. "The civic bodies perform three important tasks of regulation enforcement, infrastructure development and service delivery. The 10-point programme covers all these aspects," he said. He added that the corporators must have a broad mindset and give priority to the interests of the civic body. Read more

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Govt sits on Rs 1,838 cr AC bills of 41 departments

CAG fears misappropriation

Jammu : With Jammu and Kashmir government sitting on Rs 1837.91 crore Abstract Contingent (AC) Bills, the Comptroller and Auditor General “fears misappropriation of the huge amount involved.”  

In its latest report, the CAG mentions that 2163 AC bills were drawn by Drawing and Disbursing Officers of 41 departments between 1995 and 2012. It says that with an opening balance of Rs 517.19 crore in 2009, these bills swelled to a whopping Rs  1837.92 crore in the year 2011- 12. Read more

Source : www.greaterkashmir.com

Another administrative overhaul in J&K

FARHAT IS SECRETARY LAW; SARMAD DC GANDERBAL; MIR TARIQ DIRECTOR EDUCATION KASHMIR

Jammu : The State Cabinet which met here today under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah ordered another reshuffle in the state administration.

Sonali Kumar, IAS, Financial Commissioner (Coordination), J&K Government, New Delhi, has been transferred and posted as Principal Resident Commissioner, J&K Government, New Delhi. The post of Principal Resident Commissioner has been declared equivalent in rank and status to that of Financial Commissioner, till it is held by Sonali Kumar. She shall, however, assume the charge of the post when R.K. Goyal, IAS, joins the Government of India on 22.04.2013. Read more

Source : www.greaterkashmir.com