“The Himachal Pradesh government has postponed the Panchayat Raj elections scheduled for December this year due to the damage caused by the natural disaster during the monsoon”
Shimla 10/10/2025 Report by Santosh Seth
On Thursday, Chief Secretary Sanjay Gupta passed an order under the Disaster Management Act, stating that the current conditions are not conducive to holding elections.
Gupta cited letters from the Deputy Commissioners of Shimla, Mandi, Kangra, and Hamirpur. The Deputy Commissioners of these districts stated that the monsoon had caused significant loss of life and property.
The situation is not normal due to the disaster, with roads still unopened in many areas. In light of this, elections will not be held until proper road connectivity is restored.
The Chief Secretary issued this order under the provisions of subsection (e) of Section 24 of the State Disaster Management Act.
The Chief Secretary is also the Chairman of the State Executive Committee, constituted under the Disaster Management Act.
The District Magistrates had previously written this letter to the Panchayat Raj Secretary. The Secretary raised the matter under the Disaster Management Act through the Revenue Department, and the Chief Secretary, exercising the powers of the Disaster Management Act, passed the order.
The DC’s letter stated that various works have been initiated in rural areas under the MNREGA program. Panchayat Raj elections are not practical in the current circumstances.
Administration and department employees are busy with disaster relief work. Therefore, holding elections could cause additional burden on them.
Three-tier elections were scheduled in 3,577 Panchayats
Three-tier elections, including the BDC and Zila Parishad, were scheduled this year in 3,577 Gram Panchayats across the state.
These elections are for five seats: Pradhan, Up-Pradhan, Ward Member, Panchayat Samiti Member, and Zila Parishad Member, while voting is for Ward Councillor in urban bodies.
Recently, the state government granted additional powers to District Magistrates regarding the delimitation of Zila Parishad and BDC seats.
Election schedule set for December
According to the State Election Commission’s schedule, these elections were scheduled for December. The OBC census has previously been a thorn in the side of urban local body elections.
The state government has decided to create a separate commission for this census, but now Panchayat elections will also be stalled.
Work is currently underway to compile voter lists for the Panchayat elections, and the reservation roster was nearly finalized, but now the wait for the elections has increased.
