The Times of India       08.02.2011

MUMBAI: Tired of lodging complaints at your local municipal office about bad roads and contaminated water? You may soon have the liberty of sounding these off to a competent regulatory body.

The state government is planning to set up a regulatory commission for
municipal bodies. The panel, to be headed by a retired high court judge
or a retired chief secretary, would function on the lines of committees
set up to regulate the telecom and power sectors.

The proposal
is already in advanced stages of consideration. The state cabinet has
already approved a proposal by the urban development (UD) department to
set up a committee of ministers to study the proposed reform and provide
suggestions and recommendations.

The department has already
prepared a basic draft on the structure and the scope of the
commission’s work. The commission is proposed to be referred to as the Maharashtra Municipal Body Regulatory Commission and could comprise five members.

While the committee of ministers retains the right to change the terms
of reference of the commission, the department has proposed a wide range
of activity for the commission. From regulating the levy of various
service charges to hearing complaints received on poor delivery, the
commission would be empowered to pass orders against municipal bodies.

The department has also proposed to grant the commission powers to
adjudicate upon disputed and differences between civic bodies and
contractors appointed by it. It will also be responsible of resolving
disputes between government and private agencies involved in providing
civic services. The commission will also act as an advisor to the state
government on setting benchmarks on various parameters for civic bodies
and identifying avenues of increase public private partnership.