With major opposition parties boycotting the budget meeting of the Madurai Corporation Council here on Thursday, the Mayor V. V. Rajan Chellappa's budget presentation was punctuated with encomiums to the Chief Minister and the Mayor by the ruling party councillors.
Most of them, who spoke after the Mayor, termed the budget as historic as it had a number of schemes in the offing which could boost the city's infrastructure and make it a better place to live. In fact, the scheme to construct offices for councillors in every ward at an estimated cost of Rs. five lakh was hailed by all who spoke on the budget.
The budget session saw a full strength of AIADMK members praising the Chief Minister and Mayor with honorific and there were umpteen references to the late Chief Minister M. G. Ramachandran starrer Nadodi Mannan in which the matinee idol (in double act), through a role reversal, sees the subaltern become a king and how he comes out with people-oriented reforms. It was likened to the present schemes.
Later, talking to reporters, Mr. Rajan Chellappa said that the schemes were planned in a manner to consolidate urban development, including that in the newly adjoined areas within the corporation limits.
Lone member from the Communist Party of India (Marxist), M. Chellam, in her speech, mentioned that the conservancy workers, who had been protesting for long, should be given the benefits demanded by them, like regularisation of service of contract workers, recruitment, provision of protective gear etc.
A couple of women councillors demanded that the corporation should start nursery schools and they also emphasised that the Madurai Corporation should establish a women's college. Slaughter house built at a cost of Rs. 4. crore at Anupannadi should be brought to use again.
The Mayor, while explaining the avenues to bridge the deficit, stated that the corporation would concentrate in the collection of pending tax dues and also cable TV registration deposits. However, sources for funds from State and Centre would be identified in this fiscal and the corporation would be made a profit-making civic body, he said.
