New GPs to get own Srama Sakthi Sanghams

Hyderabad: After 11 months of their formation, the new Gram Panchayats have been permitted to have their own Srama Sakthi Sanghams(SSS) under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme(MGNREGS).

The Rural Development department has issued orders in this regard and told the officials to form the SSSs for the newly formed Gram Panchayats.

With this, the new GPs would have power to plan their own works in their respective areas.

The State government had formed about 4,000 new GPs in the State two years ago and elections to them have been held in January this year. However, the MGNREGS works have been carried out through the old GPs from which the new ones had been carved out.

Each GP has to have Srama Sakthi Sanghams or groups of wage seekers to take up works under the MGNREGS. As they have not been formed for the new GPs, the wage seekers of them have been working through the SSSs of the old GPs.

Taking this issue into consideration, the RD department has instructed officials to separate the job card holders from the old panchayats and transfer them to their respective panchayats so that new SSSs could be formed in the new GPs.

The MGNREGS scheme has been instructed to form new SSSs in the new GPs with the job card holders of that particular GP. They have been told to ensure that members of one family are placed in one SSS.

Each SSS should have at least 20 members and maximum of 40. The consent of the members of the SSS has to be taken to form a new one. The consent letters from the SSS members should be collected by the field assistants.

If any SSS is formed with ulterior motives, the project officer should be held responsible. The software would be made available to make changes in the SSSs of the new GPs.

Each SSS should have one mate (a senior wage seeker) who coordinates the works and old mates could also be considered for this purpose. At least half of the mates should be women.

The SSSs where half of the members are SCs or STs, mates should be selected from that communities only.

The SSSs would be provided with the works under the MGNREGS. Currently the GPs have been planning the works for the next financial year.

Each GP has to hold Gram Sabhas to identify the works and send the proposals to the MGNREGS officials.