Hindustan Times 11.03.2010
Let’s meet, please, BMC tells state
The municipal corporation is hoping at least this year the state government will respond to its invitation for a joint meeting.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had proposed a coordination meeting with the government nine years ago. The idea was to discuss issues that need to be addressed jointly.
The chief minister, mayor and other senior bureaucrats from the BMC and the Urban Development department are members of the coordination committee. The last time, the coordination committee met was in September 2000 when Hareshwar Patil was mayor.
The BMC has been asking for another meeting since.
Former mayor Datta Dalvi wrote to the chief minister thrice in his two-and-a-half year term while Shubha Raul reminded the government about the meeting twice in her 33 months as mayor.
Mayor Shraddha Jadhav sent a letter to Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in December 2009 soon after she was elected.
“There are many issues awaiting a final nod from the state,” Jadhav said. “These should be discussed in a meeting with the CM. I hope Chavan will schedule a meeting soon.”
The BMC has approached the state for a green signal for obtaining a loan of Rs 2,500 crore from its internal fund.
The BMC is also waiting for the state to settle dues of Rs 741 crore. It has also asked the state for a 50 per cent share in revenue from stamp duty, registration fees and professional tax, which the state collects.
The BMC is hoping that Municipal Commissioner Swadheen Kshatriya’s proximity to Chavan will help.
