Cong sold on Digvijay Singh’s window dressing

When Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh boasted of the remarkable success of Panchayati Raj in his state, exemplified by way of &#...

When Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh boasted of the remarkable success of Panchayati Raj in his state, exemplified by way of ‘‘a gram sabha every village or habitation’’, not only Congress president Sonia Gandhi but all party CMs present at Mount Abu conclave a week ago looked at him in awe.

So much so that Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh declared his intention of holding a meeting with Digvijay that very night to let the benefits of Panchayati Raj percolate into Punjab.

This was, of course, before Digvijay got hit

by bad press on account of hunger deaths in some parts of his state and Madhya Pradesh suddenly found itself bracketed along with Rajasthan.

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It’s not surprising that the Congress’ Action Taken Report on the basis of earlier Guwahati resolve, and which formed the backbone of Mount Abu deliberations, gave three stars to Madhya Pradesh. It was all but declared a model state.

Interestingly, one of the few weaknesses which the state government admitted in its presentation concerned the Public Distribution System (PDS), in a chapter titled ‘Ensuring food security for all through efficient functioning of the PDS’. The ATR on the state says: ‘‘The PDS has become flawed and correctives are required…There is no targeting. Rural employments are thinly targeted and there should be focussed action on poorer regions.’’

On Panchayati Raj though, the ATR is increasingly bullish on Madhya Pradesh. It claims: ‘‘Madhya Pradesh has been in the forefront in decentralisation of powers to local bodies with wide-ranging powers. The first state to do so after 73rd/74th Constitutional Amendment…On the basis of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act of 1996, all provisions of the same have been incorporated in the Madhya Pradesh Panchayati Raj and Gram Swaraj Act. Now there is a gram sabha in every village in the state.’’

The ATR says these gram sabhas, have been empowered to exercise control of institutions and functionaries in development sectors.

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As for the weak points in effective implementation of Panchayati Raj, the government points out that the ‘‘preponderance of Centrally-sponsored programmes defeat efforts for decentralisation and capacity building of electoral representatives is a challenge.’’

Speaking with The Indian Express during the conclave, Digvijay had mentioned the state’s health index as one of the areas which required immediate attention, beside poor roads and transport system. ‘‘Our strength,’’ he held, ‘‘is social sector; in fact, we have generated more GDP through this sector than by way of infrastructure. Now, of course, our priority area will be building infrastructure.’’