Ranchi, Jan. 18: The Supreme Court may have set the stage for holding panchayat elections in the state after three decades in its January 12 order, but many issues still need to be addressed before the rural polls can actually be conducted.

The issues include reservation for women and OBCs, electoral roll revision, deciding on whether to employ electronic voting machines or not for the mammoth exercise and ensuring law and order in rural areas, particularly Naxalite-hit zones.

State election commissioner M.K. Mandal told The Telegraph that the poll panel is now gearing up to ensure early rural polls, but it would take at least three months on its part and that of the state to complete the formalities.

Mandal added that the Election Commission has asked the state to guide the state arm on matters concerned at the earliest.

As far as women’s reservation is concerned, the government has to make arrangements for 33 per cent reservation on a horizontal basis in both scheduled and non-scheduled areas under the provisions of Article 243 (D) of the Constitution.

In light of the Centre considering 50 per cent reservation for women in rural polls, it would be up to the state to decide on it soon.

OBC reservation would be another vital issue as no fresh survey of OBC population has been conducted. OBCs need to be given reservation in proportion to their population or the government can decide to put a cap as in neighbouring Bihar, where a maximum limit of 20 per cent reservation for OBCs is in use.

Rural development secretary S.K. Satpathy, who also heads the panchayati raj department, said the state might opt for proportionate (on population basis) reservation for OBCs in both scheduled and non-scheduled areas.

Since 49 new administrative blocks have been created in two years, the government also needs to take a decision whether it would go for creation of panchayat samitis, the second tier in the rural hierarchy, in these blocks.

Delimitation of panchayats would be another issue for the government as after 2005, (when the notification for rural polls was issued first), the number of panchayats have come down.

Mandal, who happens to be former chief secretary of the state, said at present, out of 4,562 panchayats across the state, 2,228 panchayats in 15 districts of the state fall in the scheduled category.

The polls would be held for three tiers — gram panchayat (panchayat level), panchayat samitis (block level) and zilla parishad (district level).

So the single posts of mukhiya and her/his deputy (at gram panchayat), pramukh and her/his deputy (panchayat samiti) level and chairman and vice-chairman (at district) level would be reserved for STs in scheduled areas of the state.

Moreover, 50 per cent seats in those bodies would be reserved for STs in scheduled areas while the total reservation (including SCs and OBC) should not cross the limit of 80 per cent.