Deadline extended, govt looks at creating 650 panchayats
With the Centre extending the deadline for freezing of administrative boundaries of districts, and towns to July 1, the state government will now be able to complete the task of creating new Gram Panchayats for which 650 applications have been received.
Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena has issued a notification for extending the freezing of administrative boundaries of districts, tehsils, sub-tehsils, towns, wards and villages from January 1, 2025 to July 1, 2025. The issuance of this order extending the freezing time of boundaries till July 1 has now given ample time to the state government to undertake the delimitation process for carving out new panchayats and administrative units.
The Panchayati Raj elections are due in Himachal in December 2025 and as such the process for creation of new panchayats can now be competed. The date for freezing o administrative boundaries has been extended by Government of India till July 1, 2025 in view of the nationwide census.
The number of panchayats in Himachal has reduced by 43 after the upgardation and creation of some new urban local bodies last month for which some rural areas in the vicinity were merged. On an average, the population of any panchayat in HP is taken to be 1673 which includes roughly 400 families.
Sources said that though the state government is not very keen to create new panchayats the decision will be taken after formulating a policy based on the population falling under the existing panchayats.
It was in view of the earlier date of January 1, 2025, for freezing of administrative units that the state government had undertaken the task of upgrading many urban local bodies across the state. “Now the Panchayati Raj Department can examine the 650 applications received so far for creation of new panchayats and take a call on it till July 1, 2025,” said an official.
