HISTORICAL BACKGROUND of Rohtak
The history of development of local government in the State of Haryana, as in other states of India is of two kinds; the Urban Local Government and the Rural Local Government. The major units of the Urban Local Government are the municipal corporations/councils whereas minor ones are Municipal Committee. The major units of the Rural Local Governments are Zila Parishads, Panchayat Samitis, and Gram Panchayats. These institutes act within the framework set up by a state government and draw their powers from legislative enactments. These are manned and managed by persons drawn from among the public and are aimed to create harmonious coordination in keeping the administration smooth. The main purpose of these self-government institutions is to provide civic amenities to the people of area, and to promote a responsibility or will to participate in matters of local administration. The major step towards the establishment of local government in the area now comprising the Rohtak district was the constitution of Municipal Committee of Rohtak under the Punjab Municipal Act, 1867. The Meham, Kalanaur and Sampla Municipal Committee came into existence.
Municipal government in Haryana has its roots in ancient times. Some form of municipal authority appears to have been well established even during the period of Harappan Civilization. Positive evidence of highly developed urban civilization is provided by the archaeological excavations at Harappa, Montgomery district and Mohenjo-Daro (Larkana, Sindh), now in Pakistan. The streets were well planned with obvious town planning restrictions on sporadic buildings. Most impressive were the system of drainage. They testify to the vigilance of some regular and effective municipal government. On the other hand the village was the unit of State in ancient India. There was, however, no clear line between a village (Grama) and a town (Nagra). Gramin was the head of village as well as of the town. Gradually villages developed in to large towns and a city culture was evolved and reached its high watermark during the ‘Mauryan’ and ‘Gupta’ period of Indian history. Cities had their councils and also most probably had municipal administrations on the pattern of the metropolitan city of Patliputra as described by Magasthenes, the great ambassador at the court of the Mauryan Emperor Chandragupta. These councils were elected bodies but during the medieval and Mughal periods, there were no regular municipal institutions enjoying powers of self-government. Although, the existence of city councils in ancient India as well as in Haryana region cannot be denied, there is no doubt that the foundation of modern system of municipal government state was laid by the British particularly after the transfer of power from the East India Company to the Crown.
As in other parts of India already under the British rule, the administration of local services and affairs was entrusted to a bureaucratic district administration in Haryana, after it came under the British rule in the forties of the nineteenth century. Later on, however, it was decided by the British to decentralize the administration gradually and this process of decentralization begin to result in the establishment of a new political- administrative organization called municipal bodies, side by side with the existing district administration in a few towns.
The earliest Acts in Haryana dealing with the municipal administration was the Punjab Municipal Act, 1867 which gave a great fillip to the growth of municipal bodies. This Act was repealed by the Punjab Municipal Act, 1873, which aimed at providing conservancy, local improvements and education in towns of the Haryana and for levying taxes therein. In 1882, Lord Ripon, made the historic statement which has since been acclaimed as the magna-carta of the local self-government in India. He realized the importance of the local self- government and made every effort to develop it as political and popular instrument of public administration. He advocated for greater fiscal autonomy and control for the local bodies to make them stronger and more capable of taking decisions. The Punjab government agreed with his proposals and issued a resolution in September 1882 in which it was stated that the objective of the reforms introduced by the resolution was to educate the people to manage their own affairs and that the enlightenment policy of Lord Ripon should be given a real and genuine trial. Acts were passed in 1883 and 1884 (Punjab Local Boards Act and the Punjab Municipal Act, respectively), which greatly enlarged the constitution, powers and functions of the municipal authorities. Further development of municipal administrations took place under the Municipal Act, 1891, which repealed the Act XIV of 1884 and introduced such desirable changes as were revealed by the experience. It introduced communal representation. The Act of 1884, however, continued to be the foundation of municipal administration in the State.
In 1909, in order to decentralize the powers of local self-government the Royal Commission recommended that the government control upon the local self-government should be relaxed. The Punjab Municipal Act, 1911, which was passed on the recommendation of Royal Commission with certain modifications, is still the basis of Municipal Government in the State. In the period 1911-1937, the British developed a system known as ‘diarchy’. Under these arrangements, official control was gradually relaxed and local bodies were made completely elective. It was desired to establish local government whereby the people would be free to manage their own affairs. Government of India Act, 1919 prescribed a few schemes of taxes which could be levied by or for the local bodies. This measure not only enlarged the sphere of taxation but also enabled the local bodies to feel relatively independent. The Punjab Small Town Act, 1922 simplified the machinery for the municipal administration of the small towns each with a population of less than ten thousand. The Punjab Municipal (Executive Officers) Act, 1931 invested the provincial government with powers to appoint executive officers in the municipalities.
After the independence, the Act was amended to provide for wholly elected municipal committees with democratically elected Chairpersons. Provision was also made for the appointment of official advisers who were entitled to participate in the deliberations of municipal committees but without right to vote. New election rules were framed for elections on the basis of Universal Adult Franchise and the system of nominations was abandoned. Provisions were also made for the reservation of seats for Scheduled Castes.
The East Punjab Local Authorities (Restriction of Functions) Act, 1947 (Punjab Act IX of 1947) was passed to cope with the problems created by the influx of refugees on account of communal disturbances before and after the ‘Partition’, which empowered the State Government to notify certain areas and to assume functions of any local authority that was not able of performing or did not adequately perform such functions. Expenses for discharging such functions were to be paid by the local authority concerned.
After independence, till the existence of Haryana as an independent State in November 1966, the local self-government by and large functioned under the enactments done by the erstwhile Government of Punjab, namely; the Punjab Local Authorities Act, 1953, the Punjab Municipal Act, 1954 and the Punjab Municipal (Amendment) Act, 1956. With the formation as a separate State the Directorate of Local Bodies was set-up in 1966. With the enforcement of Haryana Municipal Act, 1973, all the municipal committees were superseded in Haryana and administrators were appointed to look after the affairs of local bodies which were later restored. The Haryana Municipal Act, 1973 has been amended in the year 1994 and further in 2009 for efficiency and integrity in municipal administration.
Some form of Municipal administration was introduced in Rohtak in 1862 under the executive authority of Government. The first real step towards the introduction of Municipal Government was however taken when Rohtak, Jhajjar, Bahadurgarh, Gohana and Sonepat Municipalities were constituted in 1885 under the Punjab Municipal Act, 1884. In the subsequent year Beri and Kharkhauda were also constituted into Municipalities. The Punjab Municipal Act, passed in 1891, provided a simple form of Municipal administration in notified areas where it was inexpedient to constitute regular municipalities. Accordingly, notified area committees were formed at Meham, Sanghi, Kalanaur, Butana, Mundlana, Sampla, Mandothi, Badli and Guryani. Kharkhauda was also converted into a notified area committee under this Act. Amendments of this Act followed in 1896, 1900, 1905 and it was finally replaced by the Punjab Municipal Act III of 1911. All notified area committee except that of Meham were abolished in 1912.
A few years later, in 1921, the Punjab Small Towns Act, 1921, came into force. Under this Act, Meham was declared a small town committee in 1924 and Gohana in 1953. The Act was repealed by the Punjab Municipal (Second Amendment) Act, 1954 and it converted the small town committees of Meham and Gohana into class III municipal committees.
Each Municipal Committee is divided into wards. The members of the committees are elected on the basis of adult franchise.