Bengal’s panchayat leaders get trained at IIM Calcutta

The elected representatives of West Bengal’s panchayat zila parishads are being trained at Indian Institute of Management Calcutta (IIM-C).

The management training programme that commenced on Wednesday is spread over five days and will conclude on Sunday on campus.

The sabhadhipatis, and saha sabhadhipatis, will get an exposure to several issues, namely, communication skills, women’s empowerment, local entrepreneurship, grassroots-level leadership, and negotiation.

“I am sure that with transparency, ability, and responsibility, the newly-elected sabhadhipatis and saha sabhadhipatis of panchayat zila parishads in West Bengal will benefit immensely from this training programme conducted by the professors of IIM Calcutta,” an official release quoted Pradip Kumar Mazumdar, Bengal’s minister for panchayats and rural development, as saying.

According to the training programme directors – Rajesh Bhattacharya and Bhaskhar Chakrabarti – from Public Policy and Management Group of IIM Calcutta, the programme will facilitate bringing of “world-class” management to the panchayats. The programmes, such as the one undertaken, combine “global recognition” with “local relevance”, a strategic priority for the institute.

In the recently held panchayat elections, of the 928 seats in state’s 20 zila parishads, the Trinamool Congress got 879 seats, with the BJP getting 31 seats. The Congress and the CPI(M) got 14 and two seats respectively, according to information available on the state election commission’s website.