First the model code of conduct and then the Centre’s sanitation campaign kept the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) from undertaking certain infrastructure projects proposed in its budget for this year.
While officials are getting ready to present the budget for 2015-2016 on November 19, an analysis of this fiscal’s budget shows that only 33 per cent of the proposals have been implemented so far. About 22 per cent of the proposals are under process, and 44 per cent have not taken off at all.
Leader of the House Mira Aggarwal, who presented the budget on February 11, said some projects had been held up because of the imposition of the model code of conduct in the city and the “diversion of funds”.
“Our budget just came out and then the poll code was imposed for the Lok Sabha elections. Then, with the new government at the Centre, our concentration was on improving our core service of sanitation under the Swachh Bharat campaign,” said Ms. Aggarwal.
She said that the projects that had not seen significant progress are “a bit different”. “We had proposed to make an engineering college and a model school. These were completely new ideas so it will take time,” said the BJP leader.
The engineering college was to be developed in coordination with Delhi Technological University and Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology, but the proposal hasn’t seen much movement so far. Another proposal to provide mobile services for dental health and eye care at the municipal schools has also not been implemented.
A populist scheme for construction of community kitchens providing subsidised meals, titled the Jan Ahar and Khadya Yojna, has failed to take off despite an Rs .4-crore budget allocation.
“There are certain issues about quality control and multiplicity of authority on the Jan Ahar scheme that are yet to be sorted out,” said Ms. Aggarwal.
However, the civic body has been able to implement some of its proposals. Pension has been increased from Rs. 1,000 to Rs. 1,200 and Rs. 15 lakh for former councillors to avail of medical facilities has been cleared. The opposition, Congress, however, has accused the BJP-led civic body of making empty promises. “The BJP only makes announcements and forgets about the initiatives,” said Leader of the Opposition Mukesh Goel.
