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Aurangabad Municipal Corporation to begin survey on manual scavenging

Friday, 19 April 2013 11:43 administrator
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The Times of India               19.04.2013

Aurangabad Municipal Corporation to begin survey on manual scavenging

AURANGABAD: As per the directives of the Supreme Court, the AMC has to collect the data of all persons involved in manual scavenging and submit it to the state by May 25.

The nodal officer of the survey and the chief animal husbandry officer in the AMC, B S Naikwade, on Thursday said that the state had directed the administration to give a report on whether the city is free from manual scavenging. "A committee of seven members has been formed for the survey comprising representatives from social welfare department of the AMC, wards officers and community representatives. All six ward officers in the municipal body will supervise the survey along with the sanitary officers concerned," he said.

Deputy mayor Sanjay Joshi said that the municipal body would conduct the survey and take measures as per the instructions of the government. "This central government scheme is being implemented by Maharashtra's social justice department," he added.

Naikwad said a joint training programme of representatives of all local bodies in Aurangabad, Jalna, Beed and Parbhani was held in the city recently. "About 150 representatives from the four districts attended the day-long training programme and they were trained on the survey procedure," he said.

Naikwade said that the deputy engineer in the AMC, Afsar Siddique, and a representative of social justice department of state government had recently attended a trainers' training programme in New Delhi. "These officers have now trained the participants in the region. The surveyors will collect data within fifteen days and analyse it before submitting. Apart from the survey, it is also expected that manual scavengers would voluntary come forward and furnish their details," he said. Naikwade said that under the survey, officers would also identify lavatories where manual scavenging was essential.
Last Updated on Friday, 19 April 2013 11:50
 

Surat Municipal Corporation vows to protect heritage buildings in the city

Friday, 19 April 2013 11:01 administrator
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The Times of India               19.04.2013

Surat Municipal Corporation vows to protect heritage buildings in the city

SURAT: Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) had announced two years ago on World Heritage Day a heritage policy and also took a vow to protect the heritage buildings in the city for which it set up a heritage cell. Under the heritage policy, 2,417 properties in old city and 574 in old Gamtal of Rander, which were 80-year-old or more, were identified to be in the need of conservation. However, so far no work for their conservation has been taken up.

"These properties were identified through a survey. However, the conservation work on these properties is yet to begin. The SMC's lack of expertise on the subject of conservation has delayed the process," said Bhamini Mahida, chief curator, Science Centre, SMC.

SMC made a provision for the recruitment of empanelled architect and conservation architect on permanent basis in its heritage cell along with urban planners and town planning experts. The posts were advertised four times in the last one year at the national level. But no suitable candidates for the posts of empanelled architect and conservation architect were found.

An empanelled architect and a conservation architect would have suggested the guidelines for the protection and conservation of heritage structures in the city.

"Another problem is people living in the heritage structures. Over 60 per cent of the protected heritage properties are occupied by people. Unless SMC takes over their possession and starts conservation measures, we can't bracket them as heritage monuments," Mahida added.

However, not all is lost on the conservation front. The city's pilot project of Chowk Bazaar Heritage Square is on the march. "By the middle of the year, Chowk Bazaar Heritage Square's work would reach its final stage. If need be, we would take Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation ( AMC) and state government's help for our conservation projects," municipal commissioner Manoj Das said.

"Heritage preservation is a specialized field. Hence, we are a bit cautious," said CY Bhatt, Deputy Commissioner, SMC.
Last Updated on Friday, 19 April 2013 11:04
 

Municipal corporation leaders meet L-G over parking fee hike

Friday, 19 April 2013 06:52 administrator
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The Hindu                19.04.2013

Municipal corporation leaders meet L-G over parking fee hike

Staff Reporter

Leaders of all the three municipal corporations of Delhi told Lieutenant-Governor Tejendra Khanna on Thursday that they would not allow increase in parking fee.

The Lieutenant-Governor had recently approved of new parking rates that had been proposed by a special task force appointed by the Delhi High Court.

Informing the media about what transpired at the meeting, North Delhi Municipal Corporation Standing Committee chairman Ram Kishan Singhal said: “We made it clear that there would be no hike in parking rates. This is our party’s decision and we will completely go by it. I don’t believe that raising the parking fee would in any way discourage people from buying more cars and switch over to public transport. There are 70 lakh registered vehicles in Delhi. We can’t just ban them,” Mr. Singhal said.

“Instead, increasing the tax on purchase of every new vehicle was a much better idea, which I have been proposing for a long time. Then we can also put a tax on thousands of cars coming to Delhi on a daily basis,” he added.

On the response of the Lieutenant-Governor to the refusal to raise the parking fee, Mr. Singhal said: “He is not fully convinced yet, but I am confident that we will finally convince him and make him see our perspective.”

During their interaction with the Lieutenant-Governor, who is also Chairman of the Delhi Development Authority, the corporation leaders opposed the decision of the Delhi Government to include farmhouses under the jurisdiction of the DDA developmental area and asked him to regularise these farmhouses under the jurisdiction of the respective corporation.

Mr. Singhal said the corporation leaders suggested to the Lieutenant-Governor that they can take control of the issue of cleaning if provided with a budget. “The issue of drains alongside roads maintained by the Public Works Department was also raised during our meeting and we told the Lieutenant-Governor that these drains have not been maintained and cleaned and this will create a huge problem during the monsoon,” he said, adding that without the budget for their cleaning they would not be able to maintain them.

 
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