The local body institutions have a historic role in developing the State to be on a par with developed counties in the next 20 years, Minister for Local Self-Government (LSG) M.V. Govindan has said.
He was addressing heads and officials of local body institutions in Thrissur district as part of ‘Nava Kerala Thaddeshakam - 2022’ here on Saturday.
“It was the local body institutions that helped the government face the tough phase it went through in the recent past. The State has many LSGs that even drew the attention of the world. The LSGs have become an innovative part of coordinating the functions of various departments,” he said.
The tendency to send back people coming to the government offices for various needs for silly reasons should be stopped, the Minister said. If there are mistakes in their applications, these should be cleared. Stringent action will be taken against such complaints, the Minister added.
Modernisation brings development everywhere. In Kerala, the LSGs are in the forefront of bringing modernisation. Around 5 lakh homeless people will get houses in the next five years, he said.
If the LSGs were service providers so far, they are becoming employment providers now. Entrepreneurship also should be encouraged. The LSGs should be able to overcome the patriarchal economic system through women’s empowerment. Educated women should be brought to the forefront through the Kudumbashree Mission, said Mr. Govindan.
The LSGs have a great responsibility to construct a new Kerala. The Suchitwa Kerala project should be implemented in a better way. The Amrut project too must be implemented in full swing in Thrissur, he said.
The local bodies should intervene to make the Manassodithiri Mannu project that is meant to help landless families become successful. The LSGs should be able to identify extremely poor people and bring them to the mainstream. Projects such as Vathilppadi Sevanam will make the LSGs more people-friendly, the Minister pointed out.
Tourism is an industry of the modern times. The LSGs should take up projects to strengthen this sector. In order to ensure physical capacity of the people, each panchayat should have a playground, he said.
