The Hindu        30.11.2011

MCD trifurcation Bill comes to Assembly

Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar

Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill-2011 to be moved in House today

The way Delhi is governed is all set to change with the
Delhi Government about to move the Delhi Municipal Corporation
(Amendment) Bill-2011 in the State Assembly on Wednesday. The Bill seeks
to trifurcate the civic body purportedly to create more manageable
entities and ensure better administration.

While
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has already termed the Centre’s nod for
the proposal and the subsequent approval of the Delhi Cabinet a
“historic step”, the main Opposition party, the BJP, has expressed
strong reservations over the move and believes it is politically
motivated.

However, the criticism from BJP, which had
itself been proposing in its election manifestos the need to divide the
MCD, has left people confused. Some of its own party leaders have
praised the move saying it would provide much-needed relief to the
Capital’s residents.

While the nitty-gritty of the
split are being worked out by the committee set up under former IAS
officer K. Dharamarajan, broad outlines have been drawn.

There
will be three Corporations – North, South (both with 104 wards each)
and East (with 64 wards). The three Corporations would have a Mayor and a
chairperson of the Standing Committees each.

While
the East Corporation would cater to the entire trans-Yamuna area, the
other two would split Delhi into northern and southern parts.

As
per the Bill, the new corporations would work under a Director of
Municipal Corporation who would be a senior official and ensure
equitable distribution of funds and human resources to all the three
entities.

The need for splitting the MCD had long
been felt due to the rapid growth that Delhi has seen. The civic body
covers about 97 per cent of Delhi’s geographical area and caters to
about 1.60 crore people.

The division, as per the
Government, would lead to division of work at all levels and ensure
prompt clearance of proposals. Further, it would also reduce physical
distances for people by bringing the new corporations and their offices
closer to them.

Quota for women

Ms.
Dikshit had earlier stated that if the Bill is not passed on the first
day (Wednesday) then it would be passed following a discussion on the
second day (Thursday). Thereafter, the Bill would be would be sent to
the President for her consent.

Since the amendment
Bill also proposes 50 % seats for women, the question uppermost on the
minds of many of the sitting councillors is how would these seats be
determined. “Would they be even or odd, or will some random criteria be
adopted?”