Kollam DPC approves annual plan amendments for 84 local bodies

The District Planning Committee has directed all Local Self-Government Institutions (LSGIs) in the district to include marriage and inter-caste marriage assistance for girls from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities in their annual plan.

District Panchayat president and committee chairperson, R. Lathadevi, confirmed that the necessary funds have been allocated to grama panchayats to ensure the distribution of these benefits. During the meeting held at the district panchayat conference hall, the committee approved the 2025-26 annual plan amendments for 84 local bodies.

This includes 68 grama panchayats, 10 block panchayats, 4 municipalities, the Kollam Corporation, and the district panchayat. The chairperson lauded the district’s performance, noting that Kollam currently holds the second position statewide in terms of annual plan implementation progress. In a move to tackle the stray dog menace, the committee decided to launch portable Animal Birth Control (ABC) units under Animal Husbandry Department. Local bodies have been instructed to provide the required land and basic infrastructure for these units. Additionally, all local institutions are mandated to form Biodiversity Management Committees and update their Biodiversity Registers to strengthen environmental conservation efforts. The DPC also issued a directive regarding the ‘Jeevanam’ project, which provides support to kidney patients in the district. Local bodies have been asked to transfer their shares for the project to the district panchayat in a time-bound manner. The annual plans of various local self-government institutions across the district were reviewed at the meeting.