K. Allaudin, Chairman of Tamil Nadu's Seventh State Finance Commission (SSFC), urged greater authority, financial autonomy and resources for local bodies at a seminar in Chennai. Local bodies rely heavily on transfers from the Union and State governments, and rural local bodies in many States raise just 1%-8% of revenue from own sources. India's property tax collection is about 0.2% of GDP, against roughly 1.1% in OECD countries. Tamil Nadu reserves 50% of local body seats for women. The TN-VETRI initiative seeks to strengthen rural local bodies, and the Rural Development Department has sought a rise in devolution from 10% to 12%.