LOCAL GOVERNMENT SYSTEM IN THE LEGAL STRUCTURE

 There are mainly two types of local self-Government in India:

(1) The village local self-Government and

(2) The Municipal local self-Government

Village Local Self – Government

The village local self-Government is the village or gram-panchayats. The Zilla Parishad also belongs to this category. Gram Panchayat is an excellent example of democratic set up in India. The elected representative of Gram Panchayat is known as Sarpanch. There is also a reservation of women in Gram Panchayats. The main source of revenue of Gram Panchayat includes property and other taxes, and grants from the State Government and Zilla Parishad.

The functions of Gram Panchayat include:

(i)          Supply of water;

(ii)       Construction, repair and maintenance of roads;

(iii)     Lighting of roads;

(iv)     Public health, hygiene and sanitation;

(v)       Development of agricultural activities and so on.

Municipal Local Self-Governments

Municipal Local Self-Governments are the governing bodies of urban areas (e.g. Corporation of Kochi), the municipalities of small size cities (e.g. Palakkad Municipality) and so on. The functions of Municipal Corporation and municipalities include town-planning, water supply road, preventive health care and hygiene, street lighting and so on.

In India, the local self government institutions are of both the Indian and Western types. The Village Panchayats  (or Grama Panchayats) system is purely an Indian concept and the Zilla Parishads (or District Panchayats) are also mainly of Indian origin. But the concept of other aforesaid local self-Government institutions is mainly borrowed from the west.

The local self-Government system has some obvious limitations. It has been alleged that the services rendered by the local self-Government often becomes discriminatory. If the administration is run by the local self-Government institutions, it may encourage not only regionalism but also narrow mindedness. Such a system will always go against the democratic system practiced in the national level.

However, the exponents of the local self-Government institutions hold the view that such local self-Governments are the basis of democracy and the best way to develop political consciousness among the people. Through the local self-Government, the regional and local interests convert into national level.

All the forms of local Government have the authority and separate legal existence as corporate bodies. They function in a defined area and are elected by the inhabitants of the area. They enjoy a certain degree of autonomy and the freedom of decision-making. They are entrusted by statute with such Government functions and duties as are usually entrusted to municipal bodies and panchayat institutions.

They have the power to raise funds for furtherance of its activities and fulfillment of its projects by levying taxes, rates, charges and fees. They are responsible to the State Governments and are accountable to the people who elected them. Under statutes, they are like persons, natural or legal, and have powers, rights, duties and obligations as per statutes. They are elected for a fixed time and the bodies change after every election.

POWERS AND FUNCTIONS

The following are the powers and functions of local self-Government:

1. The area of the local Government is fixed by the State Government through legislation and the jurisdiction of it is well defined. It may be a village or town or city. It has statutory status.
2. The local Government is administered by an authority or body of persons who are elected directly by the people residing in that particular area.
3. It is accountable to the people they represent. If it does not function to their satisfaction, they have the right to change it.
4. The object of local Government is to provide certain civil amenities to the people at their door-steps.
5. Local Government is concerned with the overall development of the people living within its area. It enables conscious, purposive involvement of people in the process of development.
6. Local Government provides opportunity to local people to participate actively in administration. The success or failure of developmental plans at the local level depends on the participation of local people.
7. It enables local-level decision making and involves members of the locality in decisions affecting their lives.
8. It encourages and trains talented people to become leaders and administer the Government. It improves leadership qualities. It supplies local initiatives, supervision and necessary care to ensure that expenditure upon local objects is in conformity with the needs or wishes to the locality.
9. It responds to the felt needs of the members of the locality. It makes living better, physically, economically, socially and culturally.
10. It provides local authority. Local authority means the freedom of the Government to decide and act in the sphere of activities and functions allotted to them by the statute under which they are created.
11. It acts as an intermediary between the people they represent and the other Governmental institutions.
12. It provides an opportunity for creating public opinion in favour of development efforts.
13. It provides an opportunity for group communication.
14. It motivates the people to manage their own affairs and to influence public decisions.
15. It contributes for promoting equity of opportunity and benefits.
16. It contributes to the empowerment of rural people.
17. It has power to raise finance by taxation in the area under its jurisdiction. It can easily raise the revenue through local taxes as the local people feel that they are paying for their own welfare.
18. It has freedom to act independently of central control.
19. It is a small possible unit that can perform a particular task efficiently.
20. It has freedom to perform its functions prescribed by law.

GOVERNMENTAL AND JUDICIAL CONTROL OVER LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Governmental Control

The 74^th amendment of the Constitution has granted sufficient autonomy to urban local institutions and accorded constitutional status to them, but they are not completely free from Government control. The urban local Government institutions work within the limits prescribed by the State Municipal Act which creates and governs them.

Legislative control

Urban local bodies are set up by the laws passed by the legislature. Government can bring changes in their organization, powers and functions through a law passed by the legislature.

Financial control

Government undertakes the audit of the accounts of urban local bodies from time to time for checking irregularities committed by these institutions while spending money. For raising loans from the financial institutions, Municipal Councils have to seek the prior approval of the Government.

Control through government officials

Executive officer of urban local bodies are Government officials and the Government exercises its control over these bodies through these officials. Executive officer and the Commissioner of Municipal Corporation are the key instruments of Government control over the urban local bodies. The Director, Urban local bodies also performs such a role.

Power to dismiss the urban local institutions

Under the 74^th amendment to the Constitution, these institutions have been given a stable 5 years tenure. However, even then, if in the opinion of the Government, an institution is not competent to perform its duties or persistently makes default in the performance of duties, the Government can dismiss it even before the expiry of its term.

Administrative control

1. The Government can seek any report, record or information from the Municipal Councils and Corporations.
2. The Government can appoint any officer of its own to scrutinize and examine the work done by a Municipal Corporation Council.
3. The sanction in respect of the bye-laws passed by a Municipal Corporation/Council has to be obtained from the Government.

Judicial Control

Any notice, order or action of the local self-Government can be questioned by the person aggrieved before the Tribunal for Local Self-Government Institution. The orders of the Tribunal can further be challenged in a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India in the High Court. The writ jurisdiction can straight away be invoked if the action of local self-Government is arbitrary or against provisions of law. There is however a constitutional bar for the High Court to interfere in an election process already commenced. Matters relating to election can be challenged only in an election petition and that too after the election is over.

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This article has been written by Dr. Deepak Miglani.

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