Jammu, Dec 24: Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz has sought empowerment of elected Sarpanchs and Panchs in the state to enable them to deliver effectively.
Soz, as per a party handout, called on Governor NN Vohra at Raj Bhawan here today to discuss various issues of broader public interest.
“Among the subjects discussed, the Governor appreciated the fact that Sarpanchs and Panchs can not deliver as representatives of the people unless they are fully empowered,” the handout said.
Earlier Soz, while addressing a public meeting in city outskirts, said that his party was at the forefront to ensure complete empowerment of Panchayats on the pattern of 73rd Amendment of the Constitution in order to make the Panchayats as effective institutions of local self government.
 He said that full empowerment of Panchayat Raj institutions - as per dreams of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi - is essential to make the Panchayats effective instruments of service to the people and to come up to the expectations of the people at the grass root level.
 He favoured that some honorarium should be paid to the Sarpanchs and Panchs as they have to spend from their pockets to approach different authorities in the administration and government at various levels in connection with the problems of the people.
 PCC chief said that he would constitute a committee of party functionaries to monitor the implementation of 18 centrally sponsored schemes in the state and see the possibility of associating Sarpanchs and Panchs with the process.
 He informed the gathering that the Congress President Sonia Gandhi has instituted a committee at the national level for assessing implementation of these schemes and Vilas Mutlambar, General Secretary AICC, would coordinate at the national level.
 Congress, he said, is a vibrant force in all three regions of the state and it stands guarantee for unity and integrity of the state and to ensure equitable and balanced development of the all parts of the state.

Lastupdate on : Sat, 24 Dec 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 24 Dec 2011 18:30:00 GMT
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