LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT

DISTRICT LOCAL BOARD

The District Local Board.—The administration of the Local Self- Government of the Satara district, excluding the municipal areas, is entrusted to the Satara District Local Board, which is constituted under the Bombay Local Boards Act (VI of 1923). The area administered by the Board is 3,835 sq. miles and according to the Census of 1951, it contained a population of 10,53,567. The Board is wholly elected and is composed of 53 members. Of these ten seats are reserved for women and scheduled castes. Its term of office is for four years, and is extensible by order of the Commissioner to a period not exceeding in the aggregate five years. If an election does not result in the return of the required number of qualified persons willing to take office, the Commissioner has to appoint the necessary number.

The President of the Board is elected by the Board from among its own members. His term of office is co-extensive with the life of the Board. His chief functions are: (a) to preside at the meetings of the Board; (b) to watch over the financial and executive administration of the Board; (c) to exercise supervision and control over the acts and proceedings of all officers and servants of the Board in matters of executive administration and in matters concerning the accounts and records of the Board; and (d) subject to certain limitations prescribed by Rules framed under the Act, to dispose of all questions relating to the service of the officers and servants and their pay, privileges and allowances. Without contravening any order of the Board, he may, in cases of emergency, direct the execution or stoppage of any work or the carrying out of any act which requires the sanction of the Board.

There is also a Vice-President of the Board who is elected in the same way as the President. He presides at the meetings of the Board in the absence of the President and exercises such of the powers and performs such of the duties of the President as the President may delegate to him. Pending the election of a President or during the absence of the President on leave, he exercises the powers and performs the duties of the President.

Under the Act, it is compulsory on the Board to appoint a standing committee. The appointment of other committees is optional. However, the Board has appointed the following sub-committees in addition to the Standing Committee:—

(1) Works Committee.

(2) Budget Committee.

(3) Public Health Committee.

(4) District Boarding Committee.

(5) Village Improvement Committee.

(6) Appellate Committee.

(7) Pharmacy Committee.

(8) Law and Reference Committee.

(9) Village Panchayat Committee, which is discontinued since the transfer of village panchayats to Government i.e., from 1st July 1959.

The Standing Committee is to consist of not more than nine members and not less than five members as the Board may determine. The President of the Board is the Ex-officio Chairman of the Committee. Re-appropriations and estimates of works costing not more than Rs. 5,000 are sanctioned by it. It also considers subjects that generally do not come within the purview of the other committees.

The obligatory and optional functions of the Board are set out in section 50 of the Local Boards Act. The obligatory duties are:—

(1) The construction of roads and other means of communication and the maintenance and repairs of all roads and other means of communications vested in it;

(2) The construction and repairs of dispensaries, dharamshalas and other public buildings and inspection, management and maintenance of these institutions;

(3) The construction and repair of public tanks, wells and water works, the supply of water from them and from other sources; and the construction and maintenance of works for storing and preservation of water for drinking and cooking purposes and prevention of its pollution;

(4) Public vaccination, and sanitary works and measures necessary for the public health; and

(5) The planting and preservation of trees by the side or in the vicinity of roads vesting in the Board.

With the passing of the Bombay Primary Education Act (LXI of 1947), and the rules framed under it, which came into force from 1st April 1949, the District Local Board, Satara, has no longer any administrative or financial control over primary education. The only duty of the Board is to hold an election of the members of the District School Board as prescribed in the Act and to assign a revenue equal to 15 pies of the three anna cess on land revenue and water rate.

The main financial resources of the Board as set out in section 75 of the Bombay Local Boards Act are:—

(1) a cess on land revenue up to a maximum of three annas in the rupee;

(2) a cess on water rate up to a maximum of three annas in the rupee;

(3) all rents and profits accruing from property (including ferries) vested in the Board; and

(4) grants from Government.

Under section 79 of the Act, the Board has to assign to every municipality two-thirds of the cesses on land revenue levied on lands within that municipality. The Board now levies the cesses on land revenue and water rate at the maximum of three annas in the rupee.

Under section 118-A of the Act, the State Government has to make every year a grant to every District Local Board equivalent in amount to 15 per cent, of the land revenue, including non-agricultural assessment, realised during the previous year from lands within the limits of the Board, excluding lands within municipal boroughs, municipal districts or village panchayats.

The controlling authorities in relation to the District Local Board, Satara, are the Collector; the Commissioner, Poona Division and the State Government. They exercise in the case of the District Local Board more or less the same powers that they have over the municipalities.

The following were the receipts and expenditure of the Satara District Local Board under the various heads in 1959-60, excluding primary education (which is now looked after entirely by the District School Board) and Deposits, Advances, Investments and Provident fund:—

Under Deposits, Advances, Investments and Provident Fund, the receipts were Rs. 2,36,035 and the expenditure Rs. 57,652,

The Board has unrestricted power of appointment of its officers and of payment to them. At present the Board has appointed a Chief Officer and an Engineer both in the scale of Rs. 220—15—400—E.B.— 20—500—E.B.—25—650.

On 31st March 1960, the Board had under its jurisdiction a total road mileage of 544.96. The maintenance of these roads is a responsibility of the Board. Of these 152.14 miles were metalled, 252.83 miles unmetalled and 149.99 miles cart tracks. The Board is required to frame a yearly programme of road improvements and to submit it to the Commissioner, Poona Division for sanction. Current repair works are generally provided from the local fund. During the five years ending 31st March 1960, the Board has improved a length of 171 miles of roads according to this programme.

Water Supply.—Government under its resolution, Health and Local Government Department, No. S-92, dated 24th April 1947, has sanctioned a scheme with a view to providing; drinking water supply facilities to villages with a population of 200 and above and in backward areas in villages with a population of 100 and above, which lack an adequate supply of drinking water. In the Satara district, before the merger of the States, there were 1,152 inhabited villages as per 1951 census of which 974 had a population of 200 and more. From the beginning of the scheme, the Board has completed well-works in 165 villages, in Jaoli, Karad, Khatav, Koregaon, Man, Patan, Phaltan, Satara and Wai talukas and Khandala and Mahabaleshwar petas. After the merger of the States, 112 villages were added to the Local Board area.

During the year 1959-60, the Board had undertaken to sink new wells in the following talukas:—

Health and Sanitation.—The District Health Officer appointed by the Government looks after the arrangement in connection with the control of epidemics. The Board appoints inoculators and supplies vaccine and other drugs for inoculation and disinfection of water supply on the advice of the District Health Officer. Preventive as well as curative measures are carried out by the District Health Officer through his own public health staff and the staff appointed by the Board. Similarly the vaccination staff appointed by the Board does the vaccination work under the control of the District Health Officer.

Hospitals and Dispensaries.—The Board maintains six allopathic dispensaries out of which four are grant-in-aid medical dispensaries and two are maintained by the Board from its own funds. The Board also maintains 17 ayurvedic dispensaries from its own funds. The expenditure in connection with the maintenance of allopathic dispensaries and ayurvedic dispensaries was Rs. 46,188 and Rs. 72,355 respectively during 1959-60, against which a grant-in-aid of Rs. 8,884 and Rs. 6,120 respectively was received by the Board from the Government,

There were 20 subsidised medical practitioners' centres in the district during 1959-60. The Board is required to pay one-fifth of the expenditure of these centres to the Government.

The Board maintained in 1959-60, ten veterinary dispensaries at the cost of Rs. 83,107 against which a grant-in-aid of Rs. 44,350 was received by the Board from the Government.

Other Amenities—(1) District Local Board Pharmacy.—The Board has started its own pharmacy in order to provide good medicines for its ayurvedic and allopathic dispensaries and village panchayats. It also maintains a dispensary under the Pharmacy Manager for its own employees.

(2) The Board has introduced a Village Improvement Scheme from 2nd October 1952 and has maintained five motor trucks and a special staff for the purpose. These trucks are given at a nominal rent to the villagers who volunteer to work for the improvement of roads in their villages. Technical guidance is also given. A number of villages are taking advantage of this scheme.

(3) Boarding Houses.—The Board has constructed nine boarding houses at different places in the district to' provide residential facilities to the students in secondary schools coming from rural areas.

The District Health Supervisor appointed by the Board looks after the sanitation in rural areas, trains the village panchayat secretaries in public health and sanitation and in the technique of vaccination and inoculation.

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