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Civic body to legalize 10,000 cycle carts

Friday, 29 November 2013 11:54 administrator
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The Times of India          29.11.2013

Civic body to legalize 10,000 cycle carts

CHANDIGARH: With an eye on parliamentary polls, the MC has started providing instant benefits to the weaker section of the society. The mayor on Thursday announced that the civic body authority will resume registration of cycle carts (rehris) after a gap of 22 years. The move will legalize around 10,000 illegal cycle carts in the city. The authority also decided not to issue any license of rickshaw pullers and, thus, anybody can run cycle rickshaw in the city. Both of these agendas will come up in the monthly general house meeting of Friday.

The MC is haphazardly bringing the abovementioned as table agenda in the meeting and has no answer to questions like how much time the bylaws will take to come into force, how the system would run after accommodating thousands of additional cycle carts and cycle rickshaws and how will the authorities ensure to vacate the government land from encroachers.

While announcing these developments in a media briefing, mayor Subhash Chawla claimed that resumption of licenses of cycle carts will provide direct benefits to 10,000 families in the city. He added that these cycle-carts will not be allowed to station at a given place, but will move in the internal roads of residential areas. He, however, failed to tell how the issues like traffic chaos and law and order situation will be tackled.

"It was the Congress that stopped legalization of cycle-carts and street vendors in 1992 and now as the polls are approaching and the Congress is on the receiving end due to their corrupt and anti-people deeds, they are trying to befool the people. They won"t be successful," said Harmohan Dhawan, former union minster and senior BJP leader.

Sources in the UT administration revealed that since the things are in initial stages, it would take time to frame the by-laws.

As per MC records, there are round 2,800 licensed cycle-carts and cycle rickshaws in the city. Out of these, around 1,000-1,200 are of cycle-rickshaws and rest are of cycle-carts. The MC also claimed that soon the wages of contractual sanitation employees will also enhanced. 

 

KMC, Credai solve water body disputes

Friday, 29 November 2013 11:48 administrator
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The Times of India          29.11.2013

KMC, Credai solve water body disputes

KOLKATA: Leading real estate developers in the city have persuaded the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) to use multiple reference points to map waterbodies instead of relying solely on a satellite image taken in 2004.

At a meeting with KMC commissioner Khalil Ahmad and heads of different departments, including building, assessment and project management unit that deals with waterbodies and heritage issues, local builders under the umbrella of the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (Credai) convinced the civic officials that KMC needs to do a reality check of plots with waterbodies to resolve disputes that often crop up due to difference in the old satellite image and the current situation on the ground.

"Records of KMC often show much bigger waterbodies than the actual one at the site. This is due to anomaly between satellite-aided waterbody map to actual historical and credible evidence-led mapping such as title deeds, parchas and deed plans," Credai Bengal president Harsh Patodia explained.

The builders based their argument on multiple grounds. They pointed out that the satellite image may be flawed if taken during monsoon as all low-lying undeveloped plots would have appeared as waterbodies. "One cannot fix the size based solely on a satellite image. While it is evidence, it is not conclusive. We believe other indices like past records and site visit can add to the clarity," reasoned Credai Bengal vice-president Sushil Mohta.

The records that the builders want to be referred are title deeds, parchas, ROR, assessment records and general revision is done every six years. "When Urban Land Ceiling Act was introduced in 1976, plot owners had to file Form 6 in which they had to give a complete description of the land. These can also be referred to," said Patodia.

But more than all these, developers want the site to be inspected before ruling on a dispute. They suggest that in case of dispute in quantum of waterbody, PMU authorities should be directed by higher authorities to physically inspect the site, make local inquiries and make a reasonable decision after considering the records to define the actual quantum of water-body in the premises.

Sources in the KMC said the suggestion had been accepted by the civic authorities as they found the argument reasonable. "Our intent is to safeguard waterbodies while facilitating the city's development. The suggestion from Credai was logical and reasonable. We, therefore, responded positively," the official said.

Environment action groups, however, want the KMC to exercise caution when faced with such disputes as many waterbodies have been filled up in part or entirety by land sharks since 2004. A study by the Centre for Environment & Development showed that waterbodies in Kolkata were under severe threat.

Bonani Kakkar of PUBLIC, who had waged a legal war to save the East Kolkata Wetlands two decades ago, was extremely wary of the motive of developers. "Scientific spot surveys can ascertain if a wetland has been filled up. Soil tests and vegetation samples can be conclusive but they need to be done by a competent authority like the Institute of Wetland Management," she said.

Refuting any ulterior motive, Credai officials said present day builders understood the value of waterbodies and even advertised them in projects. "Most of the disputes are over small plots. Large builders use the water to their advantage as makes a development premium," Mohta explained.

 

PMC fire dept plans weekly mock drills from December

Friday, 29 November 2013 11:41 administrator
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The Times of India          29.11.2013

PMC fire dept plans weekly mock drills from December

PUNE: The civic administration has planned weekly mock drills for the fire brigade across the city to keep the fire-fighting equipment in working condition. The administration also plans to give specially designed fire-fighting motorcycles for VIP convoys.

The fire department has six special two-wheelers.

The motorcycles are equipped with a compact water mist generating system and life-saving equipment. The Pune fire brigade was first in the state to get such motorcycles. They were procured last year. , which will help the fire brigade to immediately attend to fire calls from congested as well as slum areas. It were procured last year.

Every motorcycle has two cylinders filled with a mixture of water and foam. It has an air cylinder to break the water into small parts with maximum force.

The water jet can be on for 20 seconds. The cost of a single motorcycle was Rs 7 lakh.

A special firefighting vehicle, Aerial Ladder Platform (ALP) was bought by the fire department in 2012. The ALP can reach a height of 70 metre and help fight fires in high-rise buildings. The fire brigade department has a vehicle with a ladder that can reach 42 metre and another one, with a capacity to reach a height of 32 metre. The Rs 13-crore ALP was procured from Finland.

"There were many complaints that the vehicles are lying idle. It is not only adding to the maintenance cost of the vehicles but also the chances of vehicles getting damaged have gone up. That's why the civic administration has planned to use them more frequently," said Rajendra Jagtap, additional commissioner of PMC. As many as 11 fire stations around the city will participate in the exercise that will start next month, he added.

Civic officials said the mock drills will not only help in the maintenance of the vehicles, but also help in creating fire safety awareness. During the mock drills, the fire-fighters will educate citizens on how to deal with a fire. They will distribute leaflets and have placards and banners.

The two wheelers will be used to escort the VIP vehicles specially during the tours of chief minister or governor in the city. Two out of four two wheelers will be deployed for this task.

 
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