MARGAO
The long delay in constituting the District Planning Committees (DPCs) has cast a shadow over the launch of the constitutionally mandated bottom-up planning process in Goa.
Whether the delay can be attributed to the pending municipal elections or other administrative reasons remains unclear. What is evident, however, is that the DPCs for both North and South Goa are yet to be constituted despite the Zilla Panchayat elections having been held more than seven months ago.
Sources said former Panchayat Director Mahadev Araundekar had initiated the process by directing the Chief Executive Officers of the North and South Goa Zilla Panchayats to submit the names of elected ZP members for inclusion in the DPCs.
A similar exercise was also launched by asking the Director of Municipal Administration to furnish the names of elected municipal representatives for their induction into the district planning panels.
While the Chief Executive Officer of the South Goa Zilla Panchayat promptly forwarded the names of ZP members following a meeting of the Zilla Panchayat, sources claimed there was a delay in receiving the names of municipal representatives. “The Directorate of Panchayats had requested the Director of Municipal Administration to submit the names of elected municipal representatives for induction into the DPCs,” sources said.
When contacted by The Goan, newly appointed Panchayat Director Dashrath Redkar said he had only recently assumed charge and sought time to provide details on the status of the constitutionally mandated committees.
There are apprehensions in panchayat circles that the delay in conducting municipal elections could further stall the district planning process. The five-year tenure of the municipal bodies has already ended, with civic bodies currently functioning under administrators.
For, questions are raised whether the DPC can effectively function without the presence of Municipal elected representatives on the panels.
Sources familiar with the matter, however, blamed the panchayat authorities for failing to constitute the DPCs soon after the Zilla Panchayat elections held in December last year.
“Why did the Directorate of Panchayats not constitute the DPCs immediately after the Zilla Panchayat elections? Had the process been completed then, the committees would have been in place months ago,” a source questioned.
Convenor of the Goa Panchayat Raj Institutions, J Santan Rodrigues, attributed the delay to what he described as a longstanding lack of urgency within the system.
“For the last 25 years, Panchayat Directors have never shown any urgency in constituting the District Planning Committees. Even when they were constituted, the committees rarely met to prepare draft district development plans. The only exception was in 2024 when the South DPC had finalised and approved the draft development plan in January 2024 for the financial year 2025-26. This reflects the seriousness—or rather the lack of it—with which government agencies have implemented the Constitutional provisions relating to district-level planning,” Rodrigues said.
The continued absence of the DPCs has effectively stalled the constitutionally envisaged planning mechanism, under which panchayats and municipalities are expected to integrate local development priorities into a consolidated district development plan.
What Article 243ZD says on constitution of DPCs
There shall be constituted in every State at the district level a District Planning Committee to consolidate the plans prepared by the panchayats and the municipalities in the district and to prepare a draft development plan for the district as a whole
The Legislature of a State may, by law, make provision with respect to —
the composition of the District Planning Committees;
The manner in which the seats in such Committees shall be filled:
Provided that not less than four-fifths of the total number of members of such Committee shall be elected by, and from amongst, the elected members of the panchayat at the district level and of the municipalities in the district in proportion to the ratio between the population of the rural areas and of the urban areas in the district;
The functions relating to district planning which may be assigned to such Committees;
The manner in which the Chairpersons of such Committees shall be chosen
Functions of the DPCs
Every District Planning Committee shall, in preparing the draft development plan, —have regard to —
(i) matters of common interest between the panchayats and the municipalities including spatial planning, sharing of water and other physical and natural resources, the integrated development of infrastructure and environmental conservation;
(ii) the extent and type of available resources whether financial or otherwise;
(iii) consult such institutions and organisations as the Governor may, by order, specify
(iv) The Chairperson of every District Planning Committee shall forward the development plan, as recommended by such Committee, to the Government of the State
