The Hindu : MCD coins a new mantra

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Dec 26, 2003

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MCD coins a new mantra

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI DEC. 25. In the upcoming New Year, MCD in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi would stand for "My Clean Delhi", the Municipal Commissioner, Rakesh Mehta, said here today.

This, Mr. Mehta claimed, would be achieved through "external and internal cleanliness" of the gigantic MCD and by bringing citizens to the centre-stage of civic administration. Addressing his year-end press conference, the Municipal Commissioner laid out his strategy for a responsive, accountable and efficient administration in 2004.

"Cleanliness would not be confined only to sanitation but would also cover internal cleaning processes to bring in greater transparency, rationalisation and accountability," he said.

The five New Year resolution of the MCD, he said, were zero waste management, e-governance, unit area method of property tax, creation of new infrastructures like civic centre and promotion of more public-private partnerships.

Stating that the main thrust of the zero waste management would be segregation of garbage at source, Mr. Mehta said the infrastructure was already in place including twin-bins of green and blue colours, introduction of new types of trucks and new types of community bins of 1,100 litres capacity. Global Positioning System (GPS)-based solid waste management system is being implemented to facilitate monitoring of movement of refuse removal trucks, clearance of bins and dhalaos. The double entry accounting system and the new purchase policy coupled with new system of quality testing would clean up the system internally, he said.

As for the implementation of the unit area system for property tax, Mr. Mehta said the MCD has empanelled 1,000 architects and draftsmen who would assist in calculation of covered areas of properties. A ward-wise list of such architects is being compiled and would be available in a booklet informing citizens about new system. The report of the Municipal Valuation Committee was likely to be submitted within a month, he said.

Mr. Mehta announced expansion and strengthening of the e-governance system in the civic body including computerised drug inventory and hospital management system for better monitoring of communicable disease. A new system for disease monitoring would be implemented shortly. "We will also soon set-up a GIS Application Centre to use GIS in all our property transaction including property tax, allotment of land and sanctions of building plans," he said.

The Municipal Commissioner announced design-built-finance-operate-transfer (DFOT) system for fast construction of at least three modern parking systems at South Extension, Karol Bagh and Greater Kailash. He informed that the MCD has begun meeting different government organisations and other agencies including the power discoms to explore the possibility of allowing advertisements on structures, properties and land belonging to them on sharing basis.

The drive against unauthorised construction would be intensified in 2004, he said. "We are examining how to make the builders accountable for their actions on continuous basis. At present, there are 37 public interest litigations (PILs) pending in Delhi High Court on unauthorised constructions," he said.

Referring to a report received from Delhi police, he said at least four of the persons who had filed the PILs had criminal antecedents and two of the litigants were front men for others.

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