BMC Budget 2023: Civic body to tap into its plentiful fixed deposits to fund development works

Top BMC officials before presenting the budget 2023-24 at BMC headquarters. Pic/PTI

The budget document of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Saturday informed that the country's richest civic body would tap into some of its fixed deposits worth over Rs 88,000 crore for development projects, the move coming weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi had spoken here about "funds being locked in banks".

The BMC on Saturday presented a Rs 52,619.07 crore budget for the metropolis, with commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal saying it was the "first time in BMC's history that the budget estimates have crossed Rs 50,000 crore".

Chahal also said the civic body's fixed deposits stood at Rs 88,000 crore.

As per the budget document, the BMC, from its FDs, will withdraw Rs 7,400 crore for the coastal road project, as well as construction of Goregaon-Mulund link road and sewage treatment plants.

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The BMC would withdraw Rs 5,376 crore for other expenditure and Rs 5,970 crore for "internal temporary transfers".

The civic chief also said the BMC will also use money from the Rs 15,600 crore infrastructure fund that has been created by levying a host of premiums.

"Big infrastructure projects cannot be accomplished by levying of tax on the public. Ultimately, these FDs are made from public money. Hence if we have to give public the concrete roads, coastal roads, STPs, we will spend from it," Chahal said.

PM Modi, during his visit to Mumbai on January 19, when he inaugurated metro lines and laid foundations stones of projects worth Rs 38,000 crore, had spoken about the need for budgeted money to be spent on stated objectives.

Hinting at the breaking of civic FDs to speed up development works, Modi had said the future of the country's financial capital would not be bright if development funds are used for corrupt practices or funds are locked up in banks and there was a tendency to stall projects.

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