Delimitation, reservation set to delay gram panchayat polls

Bengaluru: Elections to over 5,700 gram panchayats are likely to be delayed — till the end of the year — as the govt is still in the process of finalising the number of seats and boundaries. Rural development and panchayat raj department officials said the exercise could take up to six months, citing the upgradation of several gram panchayats (GPs) into town panchayats and the merger of some into urban local bodies. Officials say the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Delimitation Commission will assess all factors before issuing a final notification. The commission will hold adalats and invite public opinions to finalise boundaries and the number of members in each gram panchayat. The panel has been tasked with determining territorial constituencies, allocating seats based on population, defining ward boundaries, and ensuring equitable population distribution while taking geographical and administrative factors into account. The commission recently met with department officials and deputy commissioners (DCs) of all districts, directing them to collect the required data to expedite the delimitation exercise. Karnataka State Election Commission (SEC) officials also participated in the meeting. The commission will review the data submitted by DCs and make recommendations. The process to finalise the number of members and boundaries is expected to take at least two months. Only after this, the govt can proceed with assigning reservations for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and women. The reservation process may take three to four months. Sources say if the process is completed as planned, elections could be held by the end of the year. N Nomesh Kumar, director, Panchayat Raj-I and an ex-officio member of the delimitation commission, said efforts are under way to complete the exercise as quickly as possible. "There are 5,943 GPs and more than 95,000 wards," he said. The previous gram panchayat polls in 202 were held in two phases — on Dec 22 and 27 — covering over 5,700 GPs and nearly 93,000 wards. Their five-year term ended between Jan and Feb this year. At present, administrators appointed by DCs are managing the day-to-day affairs.