JAIPUR: With elections round the corner, development finally becomes a priority for the
Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC). The
JMC is all set to undertake construction and maintenance works to the tune of Rs 300 crore. Of this, Rs 200 crore comes in the form of loan for which the state government provided the guarantees.
The officials at JMC claim that the works of road development and repair, along with fixing up of the sewerage lines across the 91 wards of the Pink City, would be undertaken and completed within the next six months.
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Complaints about bad roads and damaged sewerage lines are aplenty and multiplying each day. Broken sewerage lines have been blamed for the supply of contaminated water to several areas of the city. It’s high time that the Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) addressed the issue properly and ensured that basic amenities are taken care of. While the long-awaited and much required work of maintaining roads and sewerage lines is welcome, the JMC should have acted in time without waiting for it to be the election year. The work, though, needs to be monitored thoroughly so as to fully address the concerns of city residents. Better late than never.
Reeling under the severe pressure of a cash crunch for a long time now, the additional funds have come as a boon at the right time when the state is gearing up for elections. It has ensured that each of the 91 councillor in the city gets an amount of Rs 3 crore for the maintenance work - which is one crore more that the Rs 2 crore that are provided to legislators every year as MLA funds.
The amount would be used by the councillors for maintenance of the bylanes while Rs 27 crore, left after distributing Rs 273 crore to them, would be used in maintenance of the main roads. More than 600 colonies in the entire city will be under this scheme.
JMC had invited tenders for works in the 8 zones of the city. The work would be undertaken in colonies under JMC, housing board and colonies transferred from
Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) to JMC. Important point is that even colonies that are not approved will be given benefit under this as residents of those areas too deserved to live with proper facilities.
Jaipur mayor Ashok Lahoti said, “The fund has been sanctioned due to public demand. We were receiving many complaints. The tendering process for works worth Rs 200 crore is almost completed and for remaining Rs 100 crore, planning is going on. The work would be completed in the next six months.’’
However, Pratap Singh Khachariyawas, Jaipur district president, said this is a political stunt to fool the public and the work will not be completed before election. “The tender process will take three months to complete. It is not possible to complete the maintenance of roads and sewerage line of the city before elections. Their smart city project is a complete failure, so, they are trying to fool the public with these tactics” said Khachariyawas.
The amount will be used for maintenance of bylanes and main roads