The government is planning a dedicated panchayat service cadre to push development in the Left-wing extremism (LWE) affected areas.
The thought has come after the realisation that availability of adequate manpower is critical to the successful implementation of the various Central welfare and development schemes in the rural areas, especially the Naxal-affected. Sources said panchayats across the country are deficient in this vital resource. Hence, the proposed panchayat service cadre.
Though the plan would automatically cover the 80 LWE affected districts across nine states, in other areas it would be started in districts where either the expenditure under the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA has been over Rs 100 crore in 2009-10 or the population is above 5,000.
The Centre has also put another condition that only those states would be able to benefit from the scheme, who have either completed or have started construction of the Bharat Nirman Rajiv Gandhi Seva Kendras under the village panchayats. The states are allowed to use administrative funds under MGNREGA for the purpose.
The ministries of rural development and the panchayati raj have already held initial round of consultations with the state representatives who received the idea well.
However, some of them wanted relaxation in the criteria so that more districts could be included in the scheme.
Sources said the plan, to be executed in phases, will create around 10 lakh job opportunities in the rural areas as four posts per panchayat would be sanctioned for each of the 2.5 lakh gram panchayats in the country.