Overview
- The Panchayati Raj Department notified on January 31 that elected PRIs stand dissolved under Sections 120 and 128 of the Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1994.
- Exercising Section 140(3)(b), the Governor formed committees for Gram Panchayats, Panchayat Samitis and Zila Parishads, with powers transferring to administrators from February 1.
- Block Development Officers will chair Gram Panchayat committees with Panchayat Secretaries as member secretaries, while CEOs lead Samiti and Zila Parishad panels with designated officials as members.
- The order excludes bodies in Keylong (Lahaul-Spiti), Pangi (Chamba) and four Gram Panchayats in Kullu whose terms end in March–April, covering roughly 3,540 of 3,577 Gram Panchayats now.
- For Central Finance Commission grant payments, the member secretary is the maker and the chairperson the checker; the government targets polls by April 30 after the High Court rejected its Disaster Management Act rationale, as opposition leaders decry sidelining over 30,000 representatives.