The Hindu : Front Page : 112 village panchayats vie for ‘Nirmal’ award

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Friday, Jan 04, 2008
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112 village panchayats vie for ‘Nirmal’ award

Staff Reporter

PUDUKOTTAI: As many as 112 village panchayats in the district have been recommended for ‘Nirmal Gram Puraskar’ (NGO) award for 2007-08.

A team of Central officials will inspect the panchayats for selection of eligible local bodies for the award.

The award, which carries a purse and citation, is instituted by the Union Ministry of Rural Development and Water Sanitation to encourage the local bodies in implementation of sanitation schemes in villages.A maximum of 16 village panchayats have been selected in the Pudukottai block, 14 in Kunnandarkovil; 13 in Tiruvarankulam; 9 in Tirumayam and Aranthangi each; eight in Ponnamaravathy; seven in Karambakudi and Gandarvakottai each; six in Arimalam, Viralimalai, Annavasal and Manamelkudi each; and five in Avudaiyarkovil.The cash award is in proportion to the strength of population: panchayats with a population of 1,000 will get Rs. 50,000; Rs. 1 lakh will be presented to those with a population of 2,000 ; Rs. 2 lakh for the local body with a population of 4,000; those with a population over and above 4,000 will get Rs. 4 lakh.

Growing awareness

There had been a growing awareness of the award, going by the sharp increase in the number of competing village panchayats this year as against 30 last year, official sources said.

In their bid to achieve the goal, the village panchayat presidents have been carrying out a campaign about the importance of sanitation. Banks of water bodies or isolated sites, hitherto used for open defecation, had been cleaned and hoardings set up explaining the importance of hygiene.

The presidents have formed ‘sanitary corps’ to create awareness among the masses about the ill-effects of open defecation.

Enforcement

The DRDA officials have also been visiting these villages to impress upon the panchayat presidents and ‘makkal nala paniyalarlgal about the need for strict enforcement of sanitation measures to win the award.

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