The Tamil Nadu government has extended the tenure of special officers administering rural local bodies in 28 districts by another six months, till April 19, 2027. It has also appointed special officers to administer rural local bodies in nine other districts until the same date.
The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department issued a government order to this effect. The tenure of elected representatives of rural local bodies in 28 districts ended on January 5, 2025. The State government subsequently appointed special officers to administer village panchayats, panchayat union councils and district panchayats in these districts from January 6, 2025, for six months.
Since then, the tenure of the special officers has been extended every six months in these 28 districts and the Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994, was amended accordingly.
Similarly, the tenure of elected representatives of rural local bodies in nine districts such as Kancheepuram, Chengalpattu, Villupuram, Kallakurichi, Vellore, Ranipet, Tirupattur, Tirunelveli and Tenkasi ended on October 19, 2026.
In a letter to the government, the Commissioner of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj had said that it would not be possible to conduct elections to rural local bodies in all 37 districts before October 19, 2026.
This was because the process of merging 46 rural local bodies with urban local bodies was being finalised. The notification of expanded urban local bodies would also alter the boundaries of village panchayats, panchayat union councils and district panchayats.
The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department subsequently issued final notifications for nine newly-formed panchayat unions, 93 village panchayats and the amalgamation of one village panchayat. Following these changes, delimitation and reservation exercises have to be undertaken in 23 districts. Elections to rural local bodies cannot be conducted without completing these processes, the letter said.
Against this backdrop, the State government has extended the tenure of special officers in 28 districts and appointed special officers in nine districts to administer village panchayats, panchayat union councils and district panchayats, excluding the nine newly formed panchayat unions and 93 newly formed village panchayats, till April 19, 2027.
Published – October 21, 2026 10:31 am IST
