A ribbon-cutting here, a break of a coconut for good luck there and photo-ops all round are keeping the municipal councillors busy these days.
With elections to the municipal corporations of Delhi slated for April, the councillors and leaders of the BJP and Congress have ramped up efforts to complete projects or inaugurate long-pending ones before the model code of conduct is put in place.
Within a span of four days ending Monday, the North, South and East Delhi corporations have held nine different inauguration ceremonies. From a much-delayed parking facility in Kalkaji to inaugurating a walking track in a municipal park in Moti Nagar, the councillors and office-bearers of the BJP-ruled corporations have launched a variety of projects.
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Multi-level parking open
The ‘biggest’ project to be opened recently was the Kalkaji multi-level parking facility of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation on February 17. Inaugurated by Mayor Shyam Sharma, the parking lot was yet to become fully operational as on Monday.
Subhash Arya, the Leader of the House of the SDMC, said that the civic body would open all of its seven multi-level parking lots to the public in the next few weeks, starting with the one in Rajouri Garden on February 27.
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However, it won’t be the first time that the multi-level parking facility at Hauz Khas has been ‘opened’. The parking lot in E-Block, Hauz Khas, has been inaugurated twice officially — first by then Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley on Februray 26, 2012, and then by former Mayor and BJP leader Arti Mehra on September 16, 2013. Both these inaugurations were organised before elections in Delhi, first municipal polls and then Assembly polls.
‘Pushed to inaugurate’
The Leader of the Opposition in the SDMC, Farhad Suri, said that the BJP dispensation had been pushed to inaugurate projects that were still incomplete. “Half-baked projects are inaugurated because the BJP has to face the electorate soon with nothing to show for their 10 years in power,” said Mr. Suri.
Not just big infrastructure projects, but smaller facilities too are being inaugurated. The North Delhi Municipal Corporation has seen the Moti Nagar councillor inaugurate a walking track in a park and a re-laid galli in Sudarshan Park on February 18. The Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Vijender Gupta, opened two roads in Rohini that were renamed Balaji Maharaj Marg and Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Marg on Sunday and Monday, respectively.
EDMC not far behind
While it has been undergoing a financial crisis for years now and does not have any major projects pending, the EDMC has seen its two inaugurations. On Monday, former Congress Minister and MLA Arvinder Singh inaugurated a public toilet in Chand Mohalla. On Sunday, BJP’s East Delhi MP Maheish Girri inaugurated a medical centre in west Azad Nagar.
More launches lined up
According to leaders and officials of the North and South corporations, more such inaugurations are lined up over the next two weeks. With the Aam Aadmi Party contesting the municipal polls for the first time, the BJP and the Congress councillors are hoping that their experience as sitting councillors will help in the campaign ahead.