Presenting the Municipal Corporation of Delhi budget for the year 2012-13 at a special meeting of the Standing Committee on Tuesday, Chairman Yogender Chandolia announced a fund of Rs. 544 crore to be spent on local development by the councillors in the coming fiscal, besides increasing the amount allotted for old age pension and development of rural areas.
However, with the corporation all set to be split in April, Mr. Chandolia agreed that the provisions of the budget may never get implemented. “I understand the futility of the budget, but after the MCD splits into three separate corporations, the present budget may be used for guidance for them to come up with budgets of their own,” he said.
The chairman also said that the MCD will try to put in more effort and improve the situation in several areas: “We need to work more on the property tax; shops without licences need to be looked at to ensure that no shop in the city operates without a licence.”
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He also mentioned the need to redevelop L&DO markets and the need to find more effective solutions for parking problems in the city.
The fund for each councillor was increased from Rs.1 crore last year to Rs.2 crore, to be spent on road repair, sanitation and maintenance work. Each of the local resident welfare associations (RWAs) under the 272 wards of the corporation was provided Rs. 12 lakh under a separate head of expenditure. The councillors are expected to spend the funds on local development after consulting the RWAs in the ward.
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The pension amount for the aged was increased from the existing Rs.1,000 per month to Rs.1,200 a month. The scholarship amount for the girl child was also increased from the existing Rs.200 to Rs.500. The budget also introduced a new scholarship scheme for girls completing their senior secondary education in municipal schools. Each of these girls will be given a Rs. 5,000 fixed deposit after completing class XII.
Appreciating the work done by the MCD in the last fiscal, Mr. Chandolia said: “Under the Bharatiya Janata Party, the MCD has improved the situation a great deal. If the Delhi Government was more supportive, several people, especially pensioners and widows would have benefitted.”