Bengaluru: As a parting gift on handing over the charge to BK Hariprasad as new KPCC president, chief minister DK Shivakumar announced that he is making way for 50,000 more leaders to come through the ranks of Congress by way of creating guarantee implementation committees at panchayat and ward levels.Sources said, however, that they will be appointed without any remuneration for now.“Today, I am announcing that the govt will form five-member guarantee implementation committees in all 6,000 panchayats and 4,000 urban wards in the state. The members will be appointed from among the Congress cadre and give our workers more strength,” he said.At present, the state govt has around 4,300 members working through district and taluk level committees. Each of the panels formed by the govt has 21 members at the district level and 14 at the taluk level. The chairpersons of the district committees earn Rs 40,000 per month and those who head taluk-level panels Rs 25,000.The district-level panels have five vice-chairpersons, each earning Rs 10,000, while members earn Rs 1,200 per sitting.Shivakumar said the decision to appoint five members at every gram panchayat level is an intent to build fresh leadership at the grassroots.“We need to build our next generation of grassroots leaders. I urge our cadre who will be included on the committees to utilise the opportunity to strengthen Congress and build the party,” he said.According to sources in the guarantees implementation committee, the 50,000 Congress workers, who will be appointed to the committees at the panchayat and ward level, will likely be working as honorary members and will not be paid any remuneration.“The job description of these members will be to accompany the govt officials who are currently reviewing the five guarantee scheme beneficiaries in the state and verify their status,” said a member of the committee.Overall, Karnataka has 5,946 gram panchayats and 4,000 urban wards. This would mean the committees will have 49,730 members.It is expected the decision will also yield political capital with the Congress cadre who will be going door-to-door to familiarise themselves with the beneficiaries and maintain a steady contact with them ahead of the 2028 assembly elections in the state.
