From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Mar 13: Son of former Vice President B D Jatti and economist Prof Mahendra Jatti has been appointed as the Chairman of a five-member commission for redrawing boundaries of the 5,627 gram panchayats (GPs) in the State.

Prof Mahendra Jatti had served as a professor of the US-based Saginavally University.
The other members of the five-member commission are: A T Kittoor, professor, political science, Karnataka University, Dharwad; N Sivanna, professor, Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore; Sundar Naik, Chief Executive Officer, ZP, Chamarajangar; and Balakrishna, planning officer, ZP, Chikballapur.

Karnataka’s Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Jagadish Shettar announced the setting up of the commission and explained that the panel would study and recommend to the State Government on redrawing of boundaries of GPs based on the population.

The terms of reference to the panel included recommendations to the State Government on upgradation of GPs into town panchayats, number members to GPs and headquarters for GPs.

An order issued by the Government said that Abdul Nazir Sab State Institute of Rural Development, Mysore, has been designated as a nodal agency for the commission, to conduct the study and reimburse the expenditure incurred by it, the minister said.

The department has received several petitions seeking delimitation of exiting GPs. Some GPs cover several villages while others cover only two-three villages, Shettar said.

The commission would take at least three months to tour and study the existing problems in all districts.

Based on the report, the Government would amend the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act, 1993, to redraw boundaries, he said.

The State Government has issued an order to study the pros and cons of directly electing president to the GP by the electorate.

The Centre for Multi-disciplinary Research (CMDR), Dharwad, has been asked to conduct the study the issue and submits its report to the Government, the minister said.

Shettar said GP chiefs have been directly elected by voters in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Bihar, Haryana and Andhra Pradesh.

Though the tenure of the GP chiefs was fixed for 30 months, members of the GPs rotate the president’s post once in 10 months by mutual understanding.