Amid continued delays in panchayat elections across Himachal Pradesh, a village in Bilaspur district has chosen its key rural body representatives through mutual consent instead of a formal voting process.
The newly formed Chhandoh panchayat, carved out of Dadhol and Padyalag panchayats in Ghumarwin subdivision, set an example on Saturday by prioritising development and unanimously agreeing on the names of the pradhan, up-pradhan and five ward members.
A village meeting was held under the chairmanship of former panchayat head Mehar Singh, where residents collectively finalised candidates for all posts through consensus.
Subhash Ranaut was chosen as the pradhan, while Baljit Kashyap was chosen as his deputy. Villagers also agreed on five ward members — Sonu from Jaswani, Prakash from Maryani, Banita from Panyali, Poonam from Dohru and Omkar from Chhandoh — representing the five villages that fall under the panchayat.
However, the option to contest elections remains open, as the Supreme Court has set May 31 as the deadline for holding polls to more than 3,600 local bodies in the state.
In a major relief to the Himachal Pradesh government, the apex court on February 13 extended the deadline for holding local body polls from April 30 to May 31, modifying an earlier order of the high court.
The Supreme Court considered the logistical challenges faced by the government and the state election authorities in delimitation and reconstruction work following the heavy rains that hit the hill state in 2025.
After being chosen as pradhan, Ranaut said improving the poor road conditions and addressing the drinking water shortage through installation of hand pumps would be his top priorities.
Up-pradhan Kashyap said the entire team would work together to ensure balanced and overall development of all villages under the panchayat.
Sources said the state government may honour the Chhandoh panchayat for this initiative once the local body elections across the state are completed.
Follow us
