Ms. Amirtham said she was delighted and proud that senior officials came to witness her hoisting the flag.
Special CorrespondentCHENNAI
It was a very happy day for the Aathupakkam panchayat president in Gummidipoondi block of Tiruvallur district, V. Amirtham, when Chief Secretary V. Irai Anbu visited the village and witnessed her hoisting the national flag.
In 2020, the village witnessed tension for a few days after Ms. Amirtham, who belongs to the Scheduled Caste and is a landless agricultural labourer, could not hoist the flag. She also couldn’t hoist the flag at a local school even though she was invited there in her capacity as a panchayat president.
Ms. Amirtham said she was delighted and proud that such senior officials came to witness her hoisting the flag. “We will convene the gram sabha meeting on Monday. I had sought a new office for the panchayat, community sanitary complex, infrastructure for the local government school, improvements to the burial ground, lighting, water supply and roads,” she said.
Sources close to the president said none of the nine ward members had attended meetings in the last two-and-a-half years and she was unable to implement any projects due to lack of cooperation from them.
“This is due to the president belonging to the Scheduled Caste and eight of the members belonging to a dominant caste. They don’t say that openly but do not cooperate with her,” a source said. However, some residents claimed that the president does not call the ward members for meetings and her family members were running the show.
On Sunday, Mr. Irai Anbu was accompanied by Commissioner of Rural Development Darez Ahamed and Collector Alby John Varghese, among other officials. The Chief Secretary interacted with the president and ward members and listened to their requirements.
The panchayat president sought a new secretary as the previous secretary had been placed under suspension. Sources in the district administration said a secretary and a special monitoring officer would be appointed soon. “There is a lack of communication between the president and the ward members and a dedicated secretary is needed for the proper functioning of the panchayat,” said a source.
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