Suggestions on Ward Committee and Area Sabha Rules & Bye-Laws

1. Suggestions on Ward Committee and Area Sabha Rules & Bye-Laws CIVIC Bangalore SCM House 15th June 2013

2. Selection of ward committee & area sabha representatives • Criteria need to be prescribed for ward committee members or Area Sabha Representatives • they should not belong to any political party, • should not have any criminal cases against them, and • should have a record of service-mindedness. • Transparent and democratic procedures need to be put in place for the mode of selection of area sabha representatives and ward committee members.

3. Portfolios for ward committee members • Various interest groups themselves to select/elect their representatives who will sit on the ward committees. • Each member of the ward committee can be allocated different portfolios depending on his expertise and interest • Ward committee members holding particular portfolios could be federated at the city level to constitute a city-level forum on that particular subject

4. Sub-committees at ward level • Sub-committees can be formed under each of these ward committee members with a particular portfolio for: • water, sewerage and solid waste management • transport, roads and drains • health, education, child care • poverty alleviation and housing • welfare schemes and social security

5. Ward committees and area sabhas as consultation forums • Area Sabhas and Ward Committees should serve as platforms and conduits for citizen participation in: • issues before the municipal council, • the CDP of the city • the city’s budgets and fiscal plans • decisions on mega-infrastructure projects, loans from IFIs, global tenders, privatization policies, etc. • The opinions gathered from the Area Sabhas should be collated at Ward Committee level and sent to the Council, where the opinions from all the wards are collated

6. Data-bases at ward-level • Information & Statistics Committee at ward-level to collect necessary data and frame Human Development Index based on: • Children out of school, malnourishment and nutrition status, etc. • BPL lists, eligibility lists for old-age, widow, physically-challenged pensions, etc. • Ward Social Infrastructure Index to indicate number of PHCs, schools, anganwadis, day-care centres for 0-6 children • Ward Physical Infrastructure Index • Ward Assets & Resources Register

7. Ward committee role -Information to be made available • All suomotu [RTI 4(1)(b)] information to be available in the form of booklet/pamphlet, etc. at ward office. • Ward committees should make available at ward level all items of information about the ward: • minutes of ward committee meetings • details of properties, revenues collected • ward budgets, accounts, programme of works, • work orders, bills, vouchers,muster rolls, etc. • A Ward Finance Committee should look after ward-level finances.

8. Ward committees -Environmental & Social clearance for projects • For those projects, which require environmental clearances, public hearings, land acquisition, privatization of services, displacement of residents, zoning changes, the ward committee and area sabhas shall receive: • detailed project reports, including their cost-benefit analyses, • environment and social impact assessment reports, • survey details of affected persons from the neighbourhood, etc. • The ward committee/area sabhas shall be given 3 months’ time to give their opinion.

9. Ward visioning by ward committees • There need to be secretariats for each ward committee and area sabha. • The Ward Committees should prepare 5-year ward vision plan as per a Performance Management system (PMS) based on human development and social infrastructure outcomes at ward level. Targets need to be set and outcome indicators developed • Ward committees should have the power to take action against officials whose functioning the ward committee is dissatisfied with

10. Role of Area Sabhas • Area sabhas shall plan, prioritise, monitor, and social audit all works, select beneficiaries for schemes, etc. Their decisions shall be final. • The Area Sabha shall have the power to allow/disallow any commercial or industrial activity or any land use conversion or acquisition of any land, • disallow removal of a slum/displacement until those being removed are resettled, • get all encroachments removed from public land • have first right and control over all natural resources in its jurisdiction, such as land, CA sites, water, lakes, etc. .

11. BBMP Bye-laws on ward committees and area sabhas

12. Suggestions on BBMP bye-lawsMeeetings of ward committees • There should be a fixed day and time in the month when the ward committee and area sabha meetings are held. • The publicity for the meeting should be done within the areas and ward by putting up notices in the ward office, polling stations and through banners at important junctions in the ward.

13. Suggestions on bye-lawsJanaspandana • The circular calling for Janaspandana to be held on every first Saturday and third Saturday between 9 and 11 am in every ward under the chairmanship of the councillor should be brought into the bye-laws and made mandatory. • Action taken report (ATR) on all grievances submitted by citizens should be provided at every janaspandana meeting. 

14. Suggestions on bye-lawsResponsibility for calling meetings • The responsibility for calling and holding the ward committee and janaspandana meeting should be on the Secretary of the ward committee and not left to the whims and fancies of the elected representative. • If the councillor is unable to attend the ward committee or janaspandana meeting for any reason, any other ward committee member should be asked to preside over the meeting. • Non-holding of the ward committee meeting or janaspandana should be made punishable and  the secretary of the ward committee held accountable for the same. 

15. Suggestions on bye-lawsRole of officials • Officers of the ward should be ex-officio members of the ward committee and should be compulsorily present at the meetings • Many Asst. Engineers of the ward have been named as Secretaries of the ward committees • They are supposed to implement the decisions of the ward committee. • How much power will they have over other officials of the ward to make them implement the decisions of the ward committee?

16. Suggestions on bye-lawsRole of Area Sabhas • Nothing has been included in the bye-laws about the procedures for the meetings of Area Sabhas

17. Thank You