Himachal Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Virender Kanwar on Saturday said that Gram Panchayats would now be able to install hand pumps in their areas from the funds being provided by the 14th Finance Commission.
The guidelines in this regard have been issued to all Gram Panchayats of the state, he said. The Minister said that the Gram Panchayats will have to forward their demand for installing hand pumps to the regional office of the Irrigation and Public Health department for preparation of estimate.
The department would provide the required financial assistance from the funds of 14th Finance Commission for this purpose as per the estimate prepared by the Panchayats.
Kanwar said that funds are directly being forwarded to the Gram Panchayats under the 14th Finance Commission.
A provision has been made to provide Rs 1,800 crore to the Gram Panchayats of the State from this head, out of which Rs 488 crore will be provided during this financial year.
As the first installment for this financial year, the State Government has received an amount of Rs 244.32 crores from the Central government, which is being provided directly to the Gram Panchayats.
He said that this decision will help in redressing the drinking water problem in the rural areas besides constructing permanent properties under the 14th Finance Commission.