Urban News

The Hindu - Tamil Nadu 01.08.2009

Councillors oppose move to collect money from public for UGD scheme

Staff Reporter

ERODE: Corporation Councillors from all parties, barring the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and its ally Congress, staged a walkout opposing the move to collect money from public to execute the underground drainage (UGD) scheme.

No sooner the Council meeting began than the Councillors were up on their feet demanding the civic body to withdraw the subject tabled. Outside the Council hall, the councillors, led by AIADMK’s ‘Market’ N. Raja of Ward 17, said they opposed the move to collect deposit and tariff from the public.

The councillors wanted the Union and State governments to implement the project without any public contribution. Councillors from DMDK, MDMK and an Independent joined the walkout. The Corporation subject on the issue says it proposes to collect deposits ranging from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 18,000 and tariff from Rs. 70 to Rs. 250 for domestic consumers and deposits ranging from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 90,000 and tariff from Rs. 140 to Rs. 1,250 for other consumers on a sq.ft. basis.

The money the civic body collects, the resolution says, will from part of the Corporation’s Rs. 61.89 crore contribution, which is 29.58 per cent of the total project cost of Rs. 218.26 crore.

The civic body will collect the money, at least 90 per cent of it, while implementing the project to be used as part of the capital, says the terms and conditions of the agreement.

It will pay 9.5 per cent interest per annum, set quarterly and payable half-yearly, in 30 instalments for 20 years. It will not pay anything for the first five years, however.

Though the councillors, 11 of them, staged a walkout, the Council adopted the resolution after Mayor K. Kumar Murugesh gave an assurance that the Corporation would take it up with the Government while implementing the project.

The Hindu - Tamil Nadu 01.08.2009

Civic issues dominate Corporation Council meeting

Staff Reporter

ERODE: Civic issues dominated the Erode Corporation Council meeting on Friday.

Ward 25 Councillor K. Madan Mohan urged the civic body to talk to the Government Hospital administration to clean the medical waste dumped near the mortuary.

“The Hospital administration must take action immediately to clear the medical waste, the odour from which is troubling people living in the area something that I’ve been talking about for a long time.”

He further said, “After the recent rains, cotton, bandage and even syringes that were dumped were washed away on to the road, troubling not only the residents but also those passing by.”

The Councillor wanted the Corporation to talk to the Hospital administration to clear the garbage.

Mayor K. Kumar Murugesh, in response, assured that the Corporation’s health office and he would talk to the Hospital authorities to sort out the issue.

He then highlighted the trouble that arose from unauthorised autorickshaw stands in and around the Hospital and also elsewhere in the city.

“The Corporation, representatives of which are in the city traffic committee, must talk to the traffic police and autorickshaw drivers’ unions to sort out the issue, so that the city has areas specified and designated as autorickshaw stands.”

Ward 30 Councillor H. M. Jaffar Sadiq alleged that not Corporation staff but an authorised person collected entry fee at the Erode bus stand and deposited the amount after taking his cut.

As soon as he raised the issue, a few other Councillors joined him and they wanted the Mayor and authorities to explain how an authorised was allowed to collect entry tax. The Mayor promised to look into the issue.

Radhamani Bharathi of Ward 23 asked the civic body administration to replace damaged signboards. She also spoke about how a recently laid cement road got damaged in the recent rains and wanted the contractor concerned to carry out repair works.

The Councillor then wanted the administration to regulate the number of entrances and exits at the Erode bus stand.

Ward 18 Councillor S. Ramachandran alleged the Corporation Mayor and officials with ignoring his ward. “No development works have been carried out. My demands of two years for a speed breaker near Al Ameen school have been ignored.”

In response, the Engineering Department officials detailed the works carried out in the Councillor’s ward in the past couple of years. E. Fathima, councillor, Ward 16, spoke of encroachments along Kongalamman Koil Street and neighbouring areas and wanted the civic body to clear them.

“Pedestrians, unable to walk, are pushed to the already congested road and this troubles other road users. The civic body will do well to free the road of encroachments.”

Other Councillors also participated in the debate and spoke about issues ranging from poor drinking water supply in their respective wards, dog menace, the lack of a facility to operate the dogs, shifting lorry stand to a place outside the town.

Resolutions

They then passed over 50 resolutions including one in which the civic body will take up development works worth Rs. 3 crore in the bus stand.