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Local bodies in Tamil Nadu constitute the three tier administration set-up in the
South Indian South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...
state of
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
. It is a system of
local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...
which forms the last level from the
Centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
.
Chennai Corporation Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) is a local government for the City of Chennai in the Chennai Metropolitan Area of Tamil Nadu, India. Inaugurated on 29 September 1688, under a royal charter issued by King James II of England on 30 December ...
(now in
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
) in the then
Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...
, established in 1688, is the oldest such
local body Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...
not only in India but also in any commonwealth nations outside United Kingdom.


History

The history of local bodies in Tamil Nadu dates back to the
Ancient period Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient h ...
wherein the village administration was taken care by a Village assembly known as ''Sabai'' () in every village. Further, each village was divided into several wards known as ''mandalams'' (). This is evident from the epigraph inscriptions found in Vaikuntha Perumal Temple near
Uthiramerur Uthiramerur is a panchayat town in Kancheepuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is situated 90 km south west of Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu. It is noted for its temple inscriptions that describe a self-governance syst ...
. They used the pot-ticket system of election ( Kudavolai Murai) () to elect representatives to the assembly. Later came the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
rule in India in which the centralisation of governance was enforced. People in the interior of the villages had to walk up to the central authorities for their obligations and grievances. Anyhow this system faded out as the British government realised the pitfalls in this system. Laudable efforts of
Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Within the boundaries of the historic West Riding of Yorkshire, the ...
brought legislation in this aspect which created unions in small towns and villages, to facilitate proper sanitation and lighting. Later, councils were constituted in this regard for which the members are directly elected by elections. Councils were made accountable to an Inspector and Chairman. Though urbanisation was less prevalent those days,
Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
(erstwhile ''
Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
'') had the honour of having such
Municipal Corporation Municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally o ...
status even in 1688. Urban local bodies known Municipalities were in existence. The Local and Municipal Department was functioning in the then Secretariat from 1916. It had local, municipal, plague, medical and legislative branches.
Independent India Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
heard many voices for the revival and strengthening of the Village panchayats,
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...
insisted upon this for achieving
Swaraj Swarāj (, IAST: , ) can mean generally self-governance or "self-rule". The term was used synonymously with "home-rule" by Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati and later on by Mahatma Gandhi, but the word usually refers to Gandhi's concept of Indian ...
completely covering all the corners of this country. Later, a committee set up by
Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...
, popularly known
Balwant Rai Mehta Committee The Balwant Rai Mehta Committee was a committee originally appointed by the Government of India on 16 January 1957 to examine the working of the Community Development Programme (2 October 1952) and the National Extension Service and to suggest m ...
committee suggested the formation of three-tier Panchayati Raj system. From then, there came many legislation to ensure effective system of Local governance in Tamil Nadu. Notable legislative orders to Local Bodies by the centre-state governments include: # Article 40 of Indian Constitution # Madras Village Panchayat Act, 1950 # Tamil Nadu District Municipalities (Amendment) Act, 1950 # Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1958 # Tamil Nadu District Development Councils Act, 1958 # Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994 (ratification to 73rd and 74th
Amendment of the Constitution of India Amending the Constitution of India is the process of making changes to the nation's fundamental law or supreme law. The procedure of amendment in the constitution is laid down in Part XX (Article 368) of the Constitution of India. This procedure ...
) # Tamil Nadu Municipal Laws (Amendment) Act, 2016 # Tamil Nadu Panchayats (Amendment) Act, 2016


Overview

Developmental administration is the main objective of these local bodies. They are effected by the means of urban and rural local bodies. They are responsible for the implementation of various centrally sponsored, state-funded, and externally aided schemes for provision of basic amenities and other services to the people. Elections are held to elect the representatives for local body council in respective urban and rural areas every five years. The Ministry of Municipal Administration and Rural Development,
Government of Tamil Nadu The Government of Tamil Nadu () is the administrative body responsible for the governance of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Chennai is the capital of the state and houses the state executive, legislature and head of judiciary. Under the Const ...
is the state government governing body for local bodies which is headed by a Minister who is an elected member of the
Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a strength of 234 members, all of whom are democratically elected using the first-past-the-post system. The presiding office ...
.


Administrative units

Local bodies are categorised into Urban Local Bodies and Rural Local Bodies. This classification is rooted in terms of living standards in the context of urban and rural agglomeration.


Urban Local Bodies

The urban local bodies act as platform between the people in the urban areas and the administration. According to 2011 census of India, Tamil Nadu has about 48.45% of total population living in urbanised areas. Depending on the population and income of the urban local bodies, they are further classified into three categories. # City Municipal Corporations #
Municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...
#
Town Panchayat A nagar panchayat () or town panchayat or Notified Area Council (NAC) in India is a settlement in transition from rural to urban and therefore a form of an urban political unit comparable to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 12,00 ...
Larger cities of Tamil Nadu are governed by City Municipal Corporations (). Tamil Nadu has 25 municipal corporations:
Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
,
Coimbatore Coimbatore (Tamil: kōyamputtūr, ), also known as Kovai (), is one of the major Metropolitan cities of India, metropolitan cities in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyy ...
,
Madurai Madurai ( , , ), formerly known as Madura, is a major city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is ...
,
Tiruchirappalli Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...
, Salem,
Tiruppur Tiruppur or Tirupur ( ), is a city and municipal corporation in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Located on the banks of the Noyyal river in Western Tamil Nadu, it is the fourth largest city in the state. It is the administrative capital of T ...
,
Erode Erode (; īrōṭu), is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Kaveri river and is surrounded by the Western Ghats. Erode is the seventh largest urban agglomeration in Tamil Nadu. It is the administrativ ...
,
Tirunelveli Tirunelveli (), also known as Nellai and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Tirunelveli District. It is the fourth-largest munici ...
,
Vellore Vellore ( ), also spelled Velur, is a sprawling city and the administrative headquarters of Vellore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Palar River and surrounded by the Javadi Hills in the northeastern ...
,
Thoothukudi Thoothukudi (formerly called Tuticorin) is a port city, port industrial city in Thoothukudi district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It lies on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. The city is capital and headquarters of the di ...
,
Dindigul Dindigul (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is a city in the India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of the Dindigul district. Dindigul City is Located in the Southwest Region of Tamil Nadu. Dindigul is an ancient settlement r ...
,
Thanjavur Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of southern Indian religion, art ...
,
Hosur Hosur is an industrial city located in the Tamil Nadu state of India. Hosur is one of the 21 municipal corporations in Tamil Nadu. It is located on the bank of the river River Ponnaiyar, southeast of Bengaluru and west of Chennai, the state ...
,
Nagercoil Nagercoil, natively spelt as Nāgarkovil (, "Temple of the Nāgas", or Nagaraja-Temple), is a Municipal Corporation city and the administrative headquarters of Kanyakumari District in Tamil Nadu state, India. Situated close to the tip of the ...
,
Avadi Avadi () is a city Located within the Chennai metropolitan area, Its the headquarters of Avadi Police, Avadi City Police, Avadi City Municipal Corporation, Avadi City Corporation and Avadi taluk, Avadi Taluk located within the Thiruvallur dist ...
,
Tambaram Tambaram is a city located within the Chennai Metropolitan Area in the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. The city is governed by Tambaram City Municipal Corporation. Etymology Tambaram is an ancient town referred to as Taamapuram in an inscrip ...
,
Kanchipuram Kanchipuram (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: '; ), also known as Kanjeevaram, is a stand alone city corporation, satellite nodal city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from ...
,
Cuddalore Cuddalore, also spelt as Kadalur (), is a heavy industries hub and a port city, and headquarters of the Cuddalore District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Situated south of Chennai, Cuddalore was an important city and port during the Britis ...
,
Karur Karur () is a municipal corporation (India), municipal corporation in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the administrative headquarters of Karur district and is administered by the Karur Municipal Cor ...
,
Kumbakonam Kumbakonam (formerly spelt as Coombaconum or Combaconum), or Kudanthai, is a city municipal corporation in the Thanjavur district in the States of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located from Thanjavur and from Chennai and is the hea ...
,
Sivakasi Sivakasi is a city in Virudhunagar District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. The city is known for firecrackers and match factories that produce 70% of the country's output. The printing industries in Sivakasi produce 30% of the total diaries ...
,
Pudukottai Pudukkottai Municipal Corporation is the administrative headquarters of Pudukkottai district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is one of the oldest Heritage city located on the banks of the Vellar River. It has been ruled, at different t ...
,
Karaikudi Karaikudi is the largest city of Sivaganga district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the centre of the Karaikudi Metropolitan Area, the 21st largest urban Agglomeration of Tamil Nadu based on 2011 census data. It is part of the area ...
,
Tiruvannamalai Tiruvannamalai (Tamil: ''Tiruvaṇṇāmalai'' IPA: , otherwise spelt ''Thiruvannamalai''; ''Trinomali'' or ''Trinomalee'' on British records) is a city and the administrative headquarters of Tiruvannamalai District in the Indian state of ...
and
Namakkal Namakkal () is a city and the headquarters of Namakkal district, Tamil Nadu. It is the first ISO 14001-2004 certified municipality in Asia for environmental management, specifically the provision and maintenance of water supply, solid wast ...
. These cities alone house one-third of urban population of the state. Corporation consists of a council of elected
councillors A councillor, alternatively councilman, councilwoman, councilperson, or council member, is someone who sits on, votes in, or is a member of, a council. This is typically an elected representative of an electoral district in a municipal or regi ...
from each ward and a presiding officer,
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
who is also an elected representative. Apart from them, an executive authority referred as Corporation Commissioner is also vested with administrative powers.
Municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...
() fall next to the City Municipal Corporations. There are about 138 Municipalities in Tamil Nadu. Municipalities have four categories based on their annual income and population: - Special Grade Municipalities - 13 - Selection Grade Municipalities - 29 - Grade I Municipalities - 29 - Grade II Municipalities - 63 . Their elected representatives include ward councillors and a presiding officer, Municipal Chairperson. Municipal Commissioner is the executive authority.
Town Panchayat A nagar panchayat () or town panchayat or Notified Area Council (NAC) in India is a settlement in transition from rural to urban and therefore a form of an urban political unit comparable to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 12,00 ...
() is the body of government for areas in transition form ‘rural’ to ‘urban’. Tamil Nadu is the first state to introduce such a classification in urban local bodies. The state has 489 town panchayats. Town panchayats are upgraded to Grade III municipalities if they are found to be eligible. They are categorised in a similar way to that of Municipalities depending on the income criteria and population. Town panchayat council include elected ward councillors and their presiding officer, Town panchayat chairperson. Executive Officer is the executive authority as in the case of town panchayats.


Rural Local Bodies

Rural local bodies include the panchayat raj institutions of this state. There are three levels in this system as follows. # Village panchayats # Panchayat unions ''(coterminous with blocks)'' # District panchayats in this state Village panchayats () form the grass-root level of democracy as they form the local government for the basic building blocks of India - villages. It is set up in villages where the population is more than 300. There are about 12,620 Village panchayats in this state. Gram Sabha is a part of Village panchayat which consists of all residents of village. Village panchayat president himself/herself is an executive authority here. They must meet for minimum of four times a year. Panchayat Unions ''(coterminous with blocks)'' () is the group of Village panchayats. They serve as the link between the villages and the district administration. They form the local government at the
Taluk A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ...
level. Tamil Nadu has 388 panchayat unions. Panchayat Union council consists of elected ward members from the villages. It is headed by a panchayat union chairperson, who is elected indirectly by the ward members of the council. District panchayats in this state () form the cream of the panchayat raj system. They take the top slot with mainly advisory powers to the rest. Developmental administration of the district in rural areas are in its hands. It consists of ward members elected from various villages in its jurisdiction. It is presided by a district panchayat chairperson, who is indirectly elected by its ward members. There are 31 district panchayats in this state except for the district of
Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
as it is an
urban district An urban district is a division generally managed by a local government. It may also refer to a city district, district, urban area or quarter Specific urban districts in some countries include: * Urban districts of Denmark * Districts of Germa ...
.
District collector The district magistrate, also known as the district collector or deputy commissioner, is a career civil servant who serves as the executive head of a district's administration in India. The specific name depends on the state or union territo ...
is the ex-officio chairman of the District rural development agency.


District details


Elections

Elections to the local bodies in Tamil Nadu, held once in five years, are conducted by
Tamil Nadu State Election Commission The Tamil Nadu State Election Commission is an autonomous, independent Constitutional and Statutory authority of Tamil Nadu. It was formed under the Constitution of India as per the provisions of the 73rd and 74th Amendments Acts of 1992 on 15 ...
. Both direct and indirect elections apply for local bodies. Direct election posts include: * Urban bodies # Corporation Mayor # Municipality/Town Panchayat Chairperson # Corporation/Municipality/Town Panchayat Councillor * Rural bodies # Village Panchayat President # District Panchayat councillor # Panchayat Union councillor # Village Panchayat Ward Member Indirect election posts include (Mayor, Deputy Mayor of corporations)(Chairpersons and vice chairpersons of Municipalities and Town panchayats, District panchayats and Panchayat union Various statutory/standing committees are also elected by the way of indirect elections.


Functions

Local bodies are completely responsible for the developmental administration in the state. Maintenance of clean environment, primary health facilities gain the foremost importance. Apart from them water supply, roads and buildings, storm-water drains, street lighting, solid waste management, sanitation and bus-stands cum commercial complexes etc are the prime duties of the local bodies. Centrally sponsored schemes like Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY), Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS), etc, and State-funded Schemes like Tamil Nadu Village Habitation Improvement Scheme (THAI), Member of Legislative Assembly Constituency Development Scheme (MLACDS), Self-Sufficiency Scheme, Solar-Powered Green-House Scheme are also undertaken by the local bodies. Source of revenue for these local bodies are mainly from centre-state governments. Local bodies also have the power of taxation which include house tax, profession tax, property tax etc. Apart from these they levy fees for specific building plan and layout approvals, water charges, sewerage charges etc.


See also

* List of Developmental administrative units of Tamil Nadu


References


External links


Govt. of Tamil Nadu - official Sste
* ttp://www.tn.gov.in/maws/ Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department, Govt. of Tamil Nadu {{Authority control Government of Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...