HYDERABAD:  Underscoring the need for the planned development of the State, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, on Tuesday, directed the officials to prepare the district progress card (DPC) after preparing village-wise plans for the next four years. 

“Planning for towns and villages means planning for the State. Based on the village and town plans, the respective district progress cards should be prepared. All works in villages should be taken up in accordance with the DPC,” the Chief Minister told Collectors and other officials at a day-long meeting on Agriculture, Panchayat Raj and other related subjects at Pragathi Bhavan on Tuesday.

The gram panchayats would get `3,694 crore Finance Commission grant, `5,885 crore NREGS funds and `337 crore panchayats’ own revenue, amounting to a total of `9,916 crore. The amount to be spent on villages in next four years would be `39,594 crore. “Plan what type of works can be taken up in villages with such huge funds,” the Chief Minister told the Collectors.

Rao directed the village sarpanches to repay the loans, pay the power bills and allot 10 per cent of panchayats’ revenue for Haritha Haram. Every village has four standing committees - works committee, sanitation committee, street light committee and green cover committee, which has around 15 members. Thus, the total number of members in the village standing committees in the State is around 8,20,727. “All these standing committee members are like a big brigade.

If they join hands and take initiative for developing the villages, it will become a big movement in the State,” Rao said. Besides, the members of the standing committees, the number of elected representatives right from ward members, sarpanches to Zilla Parishad chairpersons is close to 1,32,973. If all them work together, the villages could be developed into model villages, Rao said. 

TS No 1 in NREGS
The Chief Minister said that the government has proposed to provide 13 crore man days in 2020-21 under NREGS and by providing 9.81 crore man days till date, stood at number one position in the country with an average of  of 75.5 per cent. Chhattisgarh stood second with 53.5 per cent. The national average was just 26.3 per cent, the Chief Minister said. He asked the officials to use NREGS funds to take up various works in villages, including construction of 1,000 threshing platforms in each Assembly segment. 

Spurious seeds
Terming the sellers of spurious seeds as ‘murders’, the Chief Minister said that those who provide information about fake seed traders would get `5,000 cash reward. At times, farmers, disappointed due to the non-germination of fake seeds, were committing suicides. The Rythu Bandhu representatives should keep a tab on those selling fake seeds, Rao said. 

Food processing SEZs
The Chief Minister said that the State government would set up food processing SEZs in the State. Permission for residential buildings would not be given within 500 m of these units. The aim was that all paddy produced in the State should be milled within the State. Processing units would also be set up for oil seeds and pluses. The Chief Minister said that Haritha Haram should be taken up across the State from June 25. Rao directed the officials to meet on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar and finalise a strategy to fight locusts. 

Proposed works

• Vaikuntha dhamams will be constructed in all villages in next two months
• Rythu vedikas will be built in villages in next four months
• Mandals will get 10% Finance Commission funds
• ZPs will get 5% Finance Commission funds