Just take the case of vadodara municipal corporation. this is a repeat
ofwhat has happened in bangalore earlier and esp in PUNE where an MoA with
GoI and GoM was signed by Commissioner Pune without informing the
Corporators , Council or citizens. Why should we tolerate this repetititon
which is destroying constitutional norms, cities and citizens for "a plan"
Vinay
COMMISSIONER READY TO SUBMIT RS 2,400-CR PLAN ON APRIL 15, BUT DETAILS
REMAIN UNKNOWN
Even councillors are clueless on this plan
Express News Service
Vadodara, April 12: FORGET Barodians, even the 84 elected councillors know
little about the Rs 2,400 crore NURM (National Urban Renewal Mission) plan.
While the municipal commissioner is ready to submit the City Development
Plan (CDP) on April 15, the details of the plan remain unknown, an issue
which rocked the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) general board
proceedings on Monday.
It was leader of opposition Chirag Zaveri who raised the issue about NURM
details, of which little is known to Barodians at large and even the elected
councillors themselves. Taking the administration to task for not revealing
the plan's details or the appointment of the project consultants, which in
VMC's case is CRISIL, Zaveri repeatedly questioned why the plan preparation
exercise lacked transparency.
Zaveri raised questions about the manner in which project consultants are
being appointed for various components, be it slum upgradation or road
projects.
Interestingly, the BJP-dominated board also admitted that it knew nothing
about the City Development Plan. With the Congress repeatedly pressing for
details to be made public, all that municipal commissioner Rohit Pathak
assured was that he would inform them in the month of May, after the
submission of the plan to the state and Central government.
Interestingly, while VMC officials insist that they have taken feedback from
all sectors and held meetings with several NGOs, apart from the fund
allocation, little remains known about the exact plan.
Executive engineer F J Charpot, who is in charge of the newly-carved NURM
cell, said the details were on VMC's website www.vadodarcity.org.
However, the details on the website do not pertain to the plan but the
preliminary assessment carried out by CRISIL. Standing committee chairman
Dinesh Choksi, while admitting that details were not yet known, said it did
not mean that there was something wrong with the plan-making exercise.
It is an argument which neither Zaveri or many in VMC do not buy yet. With
transparency and a participatory approach being an intrinsic feature of the
National Urban Rewenal Mission plan, VMC officials do not seem to believe
this is the case.
In addition to transparency, allegations on the manner in which consultants
have been appointed for several projects are also flying thick and fast.
ofwhat has happened in bangalore earlier and esp in PUNE where an MoA with
GoI and GoM was signed by Commissioner Pune without informing the
Corporators , Council or citizens. Why should we tolerate this repetititon
which is destroying constitutional norms, cities and citizens for "a plan"
Vinay
COMMISSIONER READY TO SUBMIT RS 2,400-CR PLAN ON APRIL 15, BUT DETAILS
REMAIN UNKNOWN
Even councillors are clueless on this plan
Express News Service
Vadodara, April 12: FORGET Barodians, even the 84 elected councillors know
little about the Rs 2,400 crore NURM (National Urban Renewal Mission) plan.
While the municipal commissioner is ready to submit the City Development
Plan (CDP) on April 15, the details of the plan remain unknown, an issue
which rocked the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) general board
proceedings on Monday.
It was leader of opposition Chirag Zaveri who raised the issue about NURM
details, of which little is known to Barodians at large and even the elected
councillors themselves. Taking the administration to task for not revealing
the plan's details or the appointment of the project consultants, which in
VMC's case is CRISIL, Zaveri repeatedly questioned why the plan preparation
exercise lacked transparency.
Zaveri raised questions about the manner in which project consultants are
being appointed for various components, be it slum upgradation or road
projects.
Interestingly, the BJP-dominated board also admitted that it knew nothing
about the City Development Plan. With the Congress repeatedly pressing for
details to be made public, all that municipal commissioner Rohit Pathak
assured was that he would inform them in the month of May, after the
submission of the plan to the state and Central government.
Interestingly, while VMC officials insist that they have taken feedback from
all sectors and held meetings with several NGOs, apart from the fund
allocation, little remains known about the exact plan.
Executive engineer F J Charpot, who is in charge of the newly-carved NURM
cell, said the details were on VMC's website www.vadodarcity.org.
However, the details on the website do not pertain to the plan but the
preliminary assessment carried out by CRISIL. Standing committee chairman
Dinesh Choksi, while admitting that details were not yet known, said it did
not mean that there was something wrong with the plan-making exercise.
It is an argument which neither Zaveri or many in VMC do not buy yet. With
transparency and a participatory approach being an intrinsic feature of the
National Urban Rewenal Mission plan, VMC officials do not seem to believe
this is the case.
In addition to transparency, allegations on the manner in which consultants
have been appointed for several projects are also flying thick and fast.