Sir, the Local Bodies are the root, the basis of our economic conditions in India and unless the better financing of the villages is properly considered and enough money is given to them. I can tell you with confidence, that we are not going to make our average citizen happy and prosperous. We may give them power. We are all anxious to give them authority; but if you do not give them money, what will they do ? How can they proceed further ? I expected, Sir, that at least in these non-justiciable rights-they are pious–I mean to say they are pious measures because they are non-justiciable–I expected that even in these pious measures there may be some mention about the equality of social rights. I do not for a moment suggest that our popular governments both in the Centre and in the Provinces do not care for them. They are as eager as some of us, or most of us here to do the right things. But they are also confronted w1th the difficulties of money and I may tell you that unless financial conditions improve, they will not be able to advance in any direction or do any good for the average man of the country, whom we have been telling for ages that when we achieve freedom we shall see that the average man really gets real happiness. Sir, it is stated in the Resolution that all the citizens, men and women, have the right for an adequate means of livelihood. It is all very well to say “adequate means of livelihood” Where is that to come from. We have to make provision for that. Of course, I do admit that merely making a provision here will not achieve the end But certainly if there is a provision to that effect it would be very difficult for the administration to overlook it.
