Municipalities of Kerala

Last updated

Kerala has an urbanisation rate of 47.42%, as compared to the national rate of 31.16%, making it the 2nd most urbanised major state in India. Within Kerala, the rate of urbanisation varied from 3.9% in Wayanad district to 68.1% in Ernakulam district. [1] Municipalities are the urban local governments that deal with civic functions and local development functions in the municipal area. The state of Kerala has 87 municipalities and six municipal corporations. [2] With 13 municipalities, the district of Ernakulam has the most municipalities in the state.

Contents

Municipalities of Kerala
Municipalities in Kerala

History

The urban councils of Kerala date back to the 17th century when the Dutch Malabar established the municipality of Fort Kochi. In 1664, the municipality of Fort Kochi was established by Dutch Malabar, making it the first municipality in Indian subcontinent, which got dissolved when the Dutch authority got weaker in 18th century. [3] However, the first modern kind of municipalities were formed in the state in 1866 in Malabar District. In 1866, Fort Kochi municipality was reestablished. Kannur, Thalassery, Kozhikode, Palakkad, and Fort Kochi, which were parts of Malabar District until 1956, were made the first modern municipalities of Kerala on 1 November 1866, according to the Madras Act 10 of 1865 (Amendment of the Improvements in Towns act 1850) [4] [5] [6] [7] of the British Indian Empire.

Enactment of the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992

The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 provided for a national framework for municipal governance in the country, and Kerala has been following that pattern since 1994. Consequent to this amendment, several changes have occurred in the functions, powers, and responsibilities of the municipalities, and the states had to make necessary amendments to the legislation on the local governments in the respective states. The Kerala Municipalities Act of 1994, [8] enacted as per the constitutional amendment, governs the pattern, functions and services of the municipalities in Kerala. The act, which was integrated for the municipalities and corporations in the state, laid out the constitution of the town panchayats, municipal councils, and municipal corporations.[ citation needed ]

Prior to this, the urban areas of Kerala were governed by the following acts, which were repealed when the Kerala Municipality Act, 1994 was introduced: [9]

Hence, instead of having separate acts for municipal corporations and other types of municipal bodies, from 1994 Kerala has the same act to govern all its municipal bodies. Since then, the structure of municipal bodies has essentially remained the same, even though the urban areas have multiplied. The 74th amendment [10] to the Constitution of India resulted in increased roles for the municipalities in every state in India, where they have been perceived to be great contributors to the social and economic development of the country, as they are the level of government that is closest to the citizens.[ citation needed ]

Structure

The Kerala Municipality Act 1994 envisage creation of three kinds of urban local governments

Kerala has not created any town panchayats so far.

Functions

The functions of the municipalities are enlisted as schedule appended to Kerala Municipality Act. The functions can be divided into civic functions and development functions in areas of agriculture, industry, health, education etc.

Functionaries

Chairperson is the executive authority of the municipalities. Elected councillors and officers are the other functionaries. Two types of officers now exist – officers belonging to the municipality as full-time officers and officers transferred to the municipality from the state government. H

Ward committees

The Kerala Municipality Act, 1994 mandates the establishment of ward committees in each ward of the municipality. [9] In case the municipality has less than one lakh population, then every person from the ward on the electoral roll becomes a member of the committee. In case the population of the municipality is more than one lakh, then the following become the members of the ward committee:

In both cases, the local Councillor is the chairperson of the Ward Committee. The Kerala Municipality (Constitution of Ward Committee and Procedure for Meeting) Rules, 1995 provides further rules for the setting up and functioning of these committees. [11] Ward Committees have been set up in Kerala and are regularly cited as a good example of functioning micro level urban governance in India. [12] Ward Committees played an important role in combating the spread of COVID19 in Kerala. [13]

Municipalities in Kerala

Municipal Corporations in Kerala
No.MunicipalityDistrictYear of formationPopulationArea(km2)Density/km2Grade
1 Neyyattinkara Thiruvananthapuram NANANANAGrade 1
2 Nedumangad Thiruvananthapuram NANANANAGrade 1
3 Attingal Thiruvananthapuram NANANANAGrade 2
4 Varkala Thiruvananthapuram NANANANAGrade 2
5 Punalur Kollam NANANANAGrade 2
6 Karunagapally Kollam 2010NANANAGrade 2
7 Paravur Kollam NANANANAGrade 2
8 Kottarakkara Kollam 2015NANANAGrade 2
9 Thiruvalla Pathanamthitta NANANANAGrade 1
10 Pathanamthitta Pathanamthitta NANANANAGrade 2
11 Adoor Pathanamthitta NANANANAGrade 2
12 Pandalam Pathanamthitta 201542,79328.42 km21506Grade 2
13 Alappuzha Alappuzha NANANANAGrade 1
14 Kayamkulam Alappuzha NANANANAGrade 1
15 Cherthala Alappuzha NANANANAGrade 1
16 Mavelikara Alappuzha NANANANAGrade 2
17 Chengannur Alappuzha NANANANAGrade 2
18 Haripad Alappuzha 2015NANANAGrade 3
19 Kottayam Kottayam NANANANAGrade 1
20 Changanacherry Kottayam NANANANAGrade 1
21 Pala Kottayam NANANANAGrade 1
22 Vaikom Kottayam NANANANAGrade 2
23 Ettumanoor Kottayam 2015NANANAGrade 3
24 Erattupetta Kottayam 2015NANANAGrade 3
25 Thodupuzha Idukki NANANANAGrade 1
26 Kattappana Idukki 2015NANANAGrade 3
27 Thripunithura Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 1
28 Thrikkakara Ernakulam 2010NANANAGrade 1
29 Kalamassery Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 1
30 Perumbavoor Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 1
31 Aluva Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 1
32 Muvattupuzha Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 2
33 Kothamangalam Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 2
34 North Paravoor Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 2
35 Angamaly Ernakulam NANANANAGrade 2
36 Maradu Ernakulam NA2010NANAGrade 2
37 Eloor Ernakulam NA2010NANAGrade 2
38 Piravom Ernakulam NA2015NANAGrade 3
39 Koothattukulam Ernakulam 2015NANANAGrade 3
40 Irinjalakuda Thrissur 1936NANANAGrade 1
41 Kunnamkulam Thrissur NANANANAGrade 1
42 Chalakkudy Thrissur NANANANAGrade 2
43 Kodungallur Thrissur NANANANAGrade 2
44 Guruvayoor Thrissur NANANANAGrade 2
45 Chavakkad Thrissur NANANANAGrade 2
46 Wadakkancheri Thrissur 2015NANANAGrade 3
47 Palakkad Palakkad NANANANAGrade 1
48 Chittur-Thathamangalam Palakkad NANANANAGrade 2
49 Ottappalam Palakkad NANANANAGrade 2
50 Shornur Palakkad NANANANAGrade 2
51 Mannarkkad Palakkad 2015NANANAGrade 3
52 Pattambi Palakkad 2015NANANAGrade 3
53 Cherpulassery Palakkad 2015NANANAGrade 3
54 Malappuram Malappuram NANANANAGrade 1
55 Manjeri Malappuram NANANANAGrade 1
56 Ponnani Malappuram NANANANAGrade 1
57 Tirur Malappuram NANANANAGrade 1
58 Perinthalmanna Malappuram 10 February 199049,72334.411445Grade 2
59 Kottakkal Malappuram 2010NANANAGrade 2
60 Nilambur Malappuram 2010NANANAGrade 2
61 Kondotty Malappuram 2015NANANAGrade 3
62 Valanchery Malappuram 2015NANANAGrade 3
63 Tanur Malappuram 2015NANANAGrade 3
64 Parappanangadi Malappuram 2015NANANAGrade 3
65 Tirurangadi Malappuram 2015NANANAGrade 3
66 Vatakara Kozhikode NANANANAGrade 1
67 Koyilandy Kozhikode NANANANAGrade 2
68 Mukkam Kozhikode 2015NANANAGrade 3
69 Ramanattukara Kozhikode 2015NANANAGrade 3
70 Feroke Kozhikode 2015NANANAGrade 3
71 Payyoli Kozhikode 2015NANANAGrade 3
72 Koduvally Kozhikode 2015NANANAGrade 3
73 Kalpetta Wayanad NANANANAGrade 2
74 Mananthavadi Wayanad 2015NANANAGrade 3
75 Sultan Bathery Wayanad 2015NANANAGrade 3
76 Thalassery Kannur NANANANAGrade 1
77 Taliparamba Kannur NANANANAGrade 1
78 Payyanur Kannur NANANANAGrade 1
79 Mattannur Kannur NANANANAGrade 2
80 Koothuparamba Kannur NANANANAGrade 2
81 Anthoor Kannur 2015NANANAGrade 3
82 Iritty Kannur 2015NANANAGrade 3
83 Panoor Kannur 2015NANANAGrade 3
84 Sreekandapuram Kannur 2015NANANAGrade 3
85 Kasaragod Kasaragod NANANANAGrade 1
86 Kanhangad Kasaragod NANANANAGrade 1
87 Nileshwaram Kasaragod 2010NANANAGrade 2

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palakkad</span> City in Kerala, India

Palakkad, also known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery, is a city and municipality in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of Palakkad District. Palakkad is the most densely populated municipality and the fourth-most densely populated city in the state. It was established before Indian independence under British rule and known by the name Palghat. Palakkad is famous for the ancient Palakkad Fort, which is in the heart of the city and was captured and rebuilt by Hyder Ali in 1766 which later fell into the hands of Zamorin in 1784. The city is about 347 kilometres (216 mi) northeast of the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kochi Municipal Corporation</span> Local civic body in Kochi, Kerala, India

The Kochi Municipal Corporation is the municipal corporation that manages the Indian city of Kochi in the state of Kerala. The Corporation manages 94.88 km2 of Kochi city and has a population of 677,381 within that area. It is the most densely populated city corporation in the state. Kochi Municipal Corporation has been formed with functions to improve the infrastructure of town.

A nagar panchayat or town panchayat or Notified Area Council (NAC) in India is a settlement in transition from rural to urban and therefore a form of an urban political unit comparable to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 12,000 and less than 40,000 inhabitants is classified as a nagar panchayat. The population requirement for a Town Panchayat can vary from state to state.

Local government. in Maharashtra State follows the general structure of Local Governance in India and is broadly classified into two categories: Urban Local Governance and Rural Local Governance.

Bihar is a state situated in Eastern India. It is surrounded by West Bengal to the east, Uttar Pradesh to the west, Jharkhand to the south and Nepal to the north.

Kerala is a state on the southwestern coast of India. It is known for its high literacy rate, low infant mortality rate, and long life expectancy. Kerala has also been a pioneer in the field of decentralization and participatory local democracy.

Municipal or local governance refers to the third tier of governance in India, at the level of the municipality or urban local body.

In India, a Municipal Council is an Urban Local Body that administers a city of population 100,000 or more. However, there are exceptions to that, as previously Nagar Palikas constituted in urban centers with populations over 20,000, so all the urban bodies which were previously classified as Nagar Palikas even if their population was under 100,000. Under the Panchayati Raj system. It interacts directly with the state government, though it is administratively part of the district it is located in. Generally, smaller district cities and bigger towns have a Nagar Palika.

A municipal corporation is a type of local government in India which administers urban areas with a population of more than one million. The growing population and urbanization of various Indian cities highlighted the need for a type of local governing body that could provide services such as healthcare, education, housing and transport by collecting property taxes and administering grants from the state government.

Local government in India is governmental jurisdiction below the level of the state. Local self-government means that residents in towns, villages and rural settlements are the people who elect local councils and their heads authorising them to solve the important issues. India is a federal republic with three spheres of government: union, state and local. The 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments give recognition and protection to local governments and in addition each state has its own local government legislation. Since 1992, local government in India takes place in two very distinct forms. Urban localities, covered in the 74th amendment to the Constitution, have Municipality but derive their powers from the individual state governments, while the powers of rural localities have been formalized under the panchayati raj system, under the 73rd amendment to the Constitution.

Local bodies in Tamil Nadu constitute the three tier administration set-up in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a system of local government which forms the last level from the Centre. Chennai Corporation in the then Madras Presidency, established in 1688, is the oldest such local body not only in India but also in any commonwealth nations outside United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kozhikode Municipal Corporation</span> Local civic body in Kozhikode, Kerala, India

Kozhikode Corporation is the municipal corporation that administers the city of Kozhikode (Calicut), Kerala. Established in 1962, it is in the Kozhikode parliamentary constituency. The first mayor was H. Manjunatha Rao. Its four assembly constituencies are Kozhikode North, Kozhikode South, Beypore and Elathur. The Corporation is headed by a Mayor and council, and manages 118.58 km2 of the city of Kozhikode, with a population of about 609,224 within that area. Kozhikode Municipal Corporation has been formed with functions to improve the infrastructure of town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kannur Municipal Corporation</span> Local civic body in Kannur, Kerala, India

The Kannur Municipal Corporation is the municipal corporation that administers the city of Kannur, Kerala. Established in 2015, the Corporation's first mayor was E. P. Latha. Kannur Corporation has two assembly constituencies – Kannur Assembly constituency and Azhikode Assembly constituency – both of which are part of the Kannur parliamentary constituency. The Corporation is headed by a Mayor and council, and manages 78.35 km2 of Kannur city, with a population of about 232,486 within that area. Kannur Municipal Corporation has been formed with functions to improve the infrastructure of town.

The 74th constitutional amendment act mandated the setting up and devolution of powers to Urban local bodies (ULBs) or city governments as the lowest unit of governance in cities and towns. This landmark initiative of the Government of India in 1993 was built upon the premise that all ‘power’ in a democracy rightfully belongs to ‘the people’. Power was mandated to be given to the people via the local bodies, namely Municipal Corporations, Councils and Nagar Panchayats, which would have representatives that are elected regularly and have a decisive role in planning, provision and delivery of services.

Elections to local bodies in Kerala were held in December 2020. Polling took place over 3 days; on 8, 10 and 14 December, with the votes counted and results announced on 16 December.

Local government in Karnataka is the third tier constituting the three-tier administration set-up in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is a system of local government which forms the last level from the Centre.

In India, a mayor heads a municipal corporation which governs respective Indian towns and cities. The mayor of a city is the first citizen of that city. Municipal corporation mechanisms in India was introduced during British Rule with formation of municipal corporation in Madras (Chennai) in 1688, later followed by municipal corporations in Bombay (Mumbai) and Calcutta (Kolkata) by 1726. However the process of introduction for an elected president in the municipalities was made in Lord Mayo's Resolution of 1870. Since then the current form and structure of municipal bodies followed is similar to Lord Ripon's Resolution adopted in 1882 on local self-governance. The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992 was introduced providing for the transfer of 18 different powers to urban local bodies, including the election of a mayor and to recognise them which included municipal corporations, Nagar Panchayats, Municipal Councils.

References

  1. "Macro Economic Profile". Kerala State Planning Board. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  2. "കേരളത്തിലെ തദ്ദേശ സ്ഥാപനങ്ങള്‍-2015".
  3. M K Sunil Kumar (26 September 2017). "50 years on, Kochi still has a long way to go". The Times of India. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  4. "CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF CENTRAL ACTS (Updated up to 17-10-2014)". Lawmin.nic.in. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
  5. Lewis McIver, G. Stokes (1883). Imperial Census of 1881 Operations and Results in the Presidency of Madras ((Vol II) ed.). Madras: E.Keys at the Government Press. p. 444. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  6. Presidency, Madras (India (1915). Madras District Gazetteers, Statistical Appendix For Malabar District (Vol.2 ed.). Madras: The Superintendent, Government Press. p. 20. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  7. HENRY FROWDE, M.A., Imperial Gazetteer of India (1908–1909). Imperial Gazetteer of India (New ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  8. Kerala Municipality Act 1994
  9. 1 2 "Kerala Municipality Act, 1994" (PDF). Local Self Government Department, Kerala Government. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  10. See 74th Constitutional amendment act
  11. "The Kerala Municipality (Constitution of Ward Committee and Procedure for Meeting) Rules, 1995 | Sanchitha". www.sanchitha.ikm.in. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
  12. Natarajan, Aruna (6 May 2019). "What can Chennai learn from Kerala and Bengaluru on citizen participation in urban governance?". Citizens Matter. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  13. "Ward level committees in the State to be strengthened: Kerala CM". Information Public Relations Department, Government of Kerala. 1 July 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
  1. Website of Local Self Government Department in Kerala
  2. Local Self Government

See also