The Punjab Government has initiated the process regarding coming panchayat elections scheduled for next year. The Rural Development and Panchayat Minister, Mr. Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa disclosing this here today said that instructions have been issued to all the District Development and Panchayat officers (DDPOs) for the formation of new Gram Sabhas and Gram Panchayats.Mr. Bajwa said that the District Development and Panchayat officers have been directed to thoroughly examine the proposals sent by the Block Development and Panchayat Officers (BDPOs) and send these to the head office of the Rural Development and Panchayat Department through the Deputy Commissioners, till August 31, 2017 by all means.Disclosing more, the minister said that Rural Development and Panchayat Department has issued instructions making it explicitly clear that for the population for which a separate Gram Sabha / Gram Panchayat is to be formed, the distant border map of the present Gram Panchayat and proposed Gram Panchayat should be sent filled in different colours so as to enable the Election Commission to prepare separate voter lists and the deputy commissioners do not encounter any difficulty in ward formation.
Divulging further, the minister said that to make new Gram Sabha / Gram Panchayats, the present population should not be less than 300 and the remaining population of the village from which the proposed Gram Sabha/Gram Panchayat is to be carved out, should also not be less than 300 people. Various figures for the population of SC and OBC must be as per statistical basis of census 2011. According to the letter issued by the department, a new proposed gram Sabha would be given a local popular name only.The Minister while issuing order for the forthcoming Panchayat elections said that the proposals for the formation of new Gram Sabhas should be minutely scrutinized before sending them to the head office for approval so as to make sure that the time in clarifications or intimidations is not wasted.Mr. Bajwa said that in the existing Panchayats where there is no proposal for establishment of new Gram Sabha /Panchayat, the work of delimitation of wards should be immediately started. He said that a uniform formula should be adopted for the ward delimitation, in order to make sure that no further objections are raised. A decision has also been taken to constitute a committee headed by the senior officers of the head office to prepare a uniform formula for the delimiting wards.