Chapter VI Chapter VI

Procedure

Presidency at meetings of Panchayat. -

1. (1) Every meeting of a Panchayat shall be presided over by its President or Chairman, as the case may be, and in his absence by the Vice- President or Vice-Chairman, as the case may be.
2. (2) If the office of the President or Chairman is vacant or if the President or Chairman has been continuously absent from jurisdiction for more than thirty days or is incapacitated, and there is either a vacancy in the office of Vice-President or Vice-Chairman or the Vice-President or Vice-Chairman has been continuously absent from jurisdiction for more than thirty days or is incapacitated, the meeting shall be presided over by a member of the Panchayat chosen by the members present at the meeting to preside for the occasion.

Meetings of Panchayat. -

1. (1) Every Panchayat shall meet for the transaction of business at least once in every month at the office of the Panchayat and at such time as the President or Chairman, as the case may be, may determine.
2. (2) The President or Chairman may, whenever he thinks fit, and shall, upon a written request of not less than one-third of the total number of members of the Panchayat or in the case of a Village Panchayat, at the request of the Inspector, call an extraordinary meeting. (3)
   • (a) No business shall be transacted at any meeting unless there be present at such meeting a quorum which shall be one-third of the total number of members of the Panchayat.
   • (b) If at any meeting, there is no quorum, the President or Chairman shall adjourn the meeting to such hour on such other day as he may deem fit and the business set down for the meeting shall be brought forward at the adjourned meeting, and it shall be lawful to dispose of the business at such adjourned meeting notwithstanding that there is no quorum.
3. (4) Every meeting of the Panchayat shall be open to the public unless the presiding member considers that the public should be excluded during the whole or any part of the meeting.

Members when to abstain from taking part in discussion and voting.- No member of a Panchayat shall vote on, or take part in the discussion of, any question coming up for consideration at a meeting of the Panchayat or of any committee thereof, if the question is one in which, apart from its general application to the public, he has any pecuniary interest direct or indirect.

Minutes of Proceedings.-

1. (1) A copy of the minutes of the proceedings at every meeting of a Panchayat as well as of all minutes of dissent in respect of such proceedings received from any member present at the meeting, shall be communicated to the Inspector, and the Commissioner or the Secretary, as the case may be, in such manner as may be prescribed.
2. (2) The minutes of the proceedings of each meeting shall be drawn up and entered in a book to be kept for that purpose and shall be signed by the President or the Chairman, as the case may be, of the meeting or in his absence by the member who presided at the meeting.

Power of Panchayat to call for records.- A Village Panchayat or Panchayat Union Council or District Panchayat may require the Executive Authority, Commissioner or the

1[Secretary], as the case may be, to furnish any document in his custody and he shall comply with every such requisition.

1.

Proceedings of Panchayat and Committees Proceedings of Panchayat and Committees.-

1. (1) Every Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council and District Panchayat and every committee thereof shall cause minutes of the proceedings of the meetings to be entered in a book to be kept for that purpose.
2. (2) The minutes shall contain the names of the members present and of the officer, if any, present at the meeting and the proceedings of each meeting shall be signed by the person who presided at the meeting or the next ensuing meeting.
3. (3) A copy of the minutes of the proceedings of every meeting of a Village Panchayat shall be submitted to the Panchayat Union Council concerned and in the case of Panchayat Union Council, to the District Panchayat concerned and in the case of District Panchayat, to the Inspector, within such time as may be prescribed.
4. (4) A copy of the minutes of the proceedings of every meeting of the Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council and District Panchayat shall be published in such manner as may be prescribed.

Appointment of Joint Committees. –

1. (1) A Village Panchayat may, and if so required by the Inspector shall, join with one, or more than one, other local authority in constituting a joint committee for any purpose in which they are jointly interested, or for any matter for which they are jointly responsible.
2. (2) The constitution, powers and procedure of a joint committee and the method of settling differences of opinion arising in connection with the committee between the local authorities concerned shall be such as may be prescribed.
3. (3) Any Joint Committee constituted under sub-section
4. (1) may include persons who are not members of the local authorities concerned, but who, in the opinion of the local authorities concerned, possess special qualifications for serving on such committee.

Committees. –

1. (1) The Panchayat may constitute committees for the purpose of exercising such powers, discharging such duties or performing such functions as the Panchayat may delegate to them.
2. (2) The constitution, powers and procedure of the committees shall be such as may be prescribed.

Standing Committees.–

1. (1) Every Panchayat Union Council or District Panchayat shall constitute Standing Committees for the discharge of its administrative functions.
2. (2) The number and names of the Standing Committees and the functions to be assigned to them shall be such as may be prescribed.
3. (3) Each Standing Committee shall consist of such number of members as may be prescribed, to be elected by the members of the Panchayat Union Council or District Panchayat, as the case may be, from among themselves.
4. (4) The Chairman shall be the ex-officio member and the Chairman of all such Standing Committees.
5. (5) The Standing Committee shall meet at such time and at such places and shall observe such rules of procedure in regard to transaction of business at its meetings as may be prescribed.
6. (6) The Standing Committee shall, in their deliberations, be guided by the principles of all round development of the panchayat area.

Administration reports of Village Panchayats.–

1. (1) The Executive Authority of every Village Panchayat shall prepare a report on its administration for each financial year and submit it to the Village Panchayat for its consideration.
2. (2) After consideration by the Village Panchayat, the report shall be submitted to the Panchayat Union Council and a copy thereof shall be sent to the Inspector.
3. (3) The Village Panchayat shall attach to the report such statements and accounts as may be prescribed.

Administration report of Panchayat Union Councils and District Panchayats.—(1) The Commissioner of every Panchayat Union Council and the Secretary of every District Panchayat shall prepare and furnish to the Government a report on the administration of the Panchayat Union Council or the District Panchayat, as the case may be, during each year, as soon as may be after the close of such year and not later than the prescribed date.

1. (2) The Commissioner or the Secretary, as the case may be, shall prepare the administration report in such form and with such details as the Government may direct.
2. (3) The Panchayat Union Council or the District Panchayat concerned shall consider the administration report and send its resolution thereon to the Government.

Acts of Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council and District Panchayat, etc. not to invalidated by infirmity vacancy, etc.—No act of a Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council or District Panchayat or of a committee thereof or of any person acting as President, Chairman or member of such Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council, District Panchayat or committee shall be deemed to be invalid by reason only of a defect in the establishment or constitution of such Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council, District Panchayat or committee or on the ground that the President, Chairman or any member of such Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council, District Panchayat or committee was not entitled to hold or continue in such office by reason of any disqualification or by reason of any irregularity or illegality in his election or otherwise or by reason of such act having been done during the period of any vacancy in the office of the President, Chairman or member of such Village Panchayat, Panchayat Union Council, District Panchayat or committee.