Local Government Finance in Kerala (original) (raw)

Local governments in Kerala enjoy very stable sources of revenue compared to their counterparts in the country. Even before the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments in 1994, the situation was true. The sources of income earmarked for local governments, prior to the amendments, were meant for providing civic services and welfare functions, but not for development functions. The scenario had changed after the constitutional amendments and enactment of conformity acts in the State in 1994. Significant portion of development functions of the State were devolved to local governments. In 1996, the State government earmarked one-third of its development plan size as devolved funds for bottom-up planning in development sectors transferred to local governments. This was followed by many measures