As part of the state government’s initiative to provide an office to every village panchayat, the Rajkot district panchayat has decided to construct offices for 10 to 12 village panchayats, which currently have no panchayat ghar (office), and also to construct new buildings to replace dilapidated offices in more than 60 village panchayats.
A total of 78 panchayat ghars-cum-talati-matri-residences will be constructed in the district, an official release from the district panchayat said. Of these, 67 will be constructed using funds under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and 11 will be funded using grants from the 15th Finance Commission, the release further said.
We are hopeful of getting MNREGA material grant for construction of these new village panchayat office buildings and our plan is to complete the construction of these buildings by May 1, the foundation day of Gujarat. On the other hand, the general board of Rajkot district panchayat has already given the green signal to construct 11 panchayat office buildings using the 15th Finance Commission grant, and therefore funding is not a problem there,” said Dev Chaudhary, district development officer (DDO) of Rajkot.
“There are around 10 to 12 village panchayats in the district which are functioning out of rented premises, but now they will have their own office buildings. In other villages, existing office buildings are in a dilapidated condition or out of use and new ones will be constructed in their place,” he added.
According to the release, 11 village panchayat office buildings will be constructed in Jamkandoarana taluka, 10 each in Vinchhiya and Upleta talukas, eight each in Rajkot and Jasdan talukas, seven each in Kotda Sangani and Padadhari talukas, six in Dhoraji, five in Gondal, four in Jetpur and two in Lodhika.
