01 April,2014 08:57 AM IST | | Chetna Sadadekar
Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation manages to expend not more than 45 percent of its humongous Rs 27,578 crore budget on civic works
Mumbai: Given the 13-digit budget the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) announced and the fraction it ended up spending, it one may be forgiven if they conclude that the richest municipal corporation in the country doesn't need really need the riches. Going by its spending during the two time spans, the amount of public work the BMC did in the last two months of the fiscal 2013-14 is comparable to what it carried out in the preceding 10 months.
mid-day had earlier reported how until January-end, merely 25 per cent of the total civic budget of Rs 27,578 crore was used. Now that it is March 31, the BMC has spent more than 45 per cent of the total, the rest remains unused. So while a fourth was consumed in the financial's first 10 months, roughly another fifth was put to use in February and March.
Again, for the coming fiscal, the municipal commissioner proposed a big budget of Rs 31,178 crore to the standing committee. Many fear this would also remain unused for the first five to six months, owing to the election code of conduct which is currently in effect for the Lok Sabha polls, and later due to the assembly elections. Although, for 2014-15, the budget did not make any new announcements and kept its focus on completing the previous year's promises.
Leader of opposition in the BMC, Congress' Devendra Amberkar, said, "This is something unacceptable. If the BMC has funds that can be used, why not use them when there is time; why wait till the last two months? The budget utilised in the last two months is more than what it was in the span of 10 months. And since the corporation has managed to use only 40-45 per cent of the total budget, why announce such huge budgets in the first place?"
Additional Municipal Commissioner SVR Srinivas, who handles the roads, bridges and SWD departments, said, "We do utilise our funds appropriately, and most of the work is done on the ground-level. But the payments take time, due to which the accounts differ. And it is not that no work was done in the past 10 months. The work is on throughout the year."
