62nd Governing Board meeting

The RA-WCom has published extensive comments on the minutes of the 62nd meeting of the Governing Board, held in December 2022, which were only made public in October this year. The RA-WCom observed that, as no sufficient prior notices are given to the Residents’ Assembly or its duly appointed Working Committee about the agendas of the Governing Board meetings, it has not been possible to give any meaningful advice or suggestions as envisaged in section 19 of the Auroville Foundation Act. The RA-WCom stated that the Governing Board cannot render such a role, which is specifically envisaged by the Act, redundant by not asking for such advice nor by unreasonably rejecting the advice of the Residents’ Assembly, as the decisions of the Governing Board must subserve the objects of the Act which are, inter alia, to further the development of Auroville and its residents “in accordance with the original Charter of Auroville”. The RA-WCom also observed that since 2021 almost 200 people, who have completed their process to join Auroville, are waiting to be entered into the Register of Residents (RoR). The direction of the Governing Board, recorded in the minutes of its 59th meeting of April 2022, that an update of the RoR be completed by July 2022 has not been adhered to.