Thiruvananthapuram corporation to have new secretary after L S Deepa gets promoted

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Capital corporation is set to have a change at the helm of administration with secretary L S Deepa getting promoted as joint director, urban affairs department.
The department promotion committee (higher) for Urban affairs in its meeting held on July 29 had cleared the promotion of L S Deepa. She will take up new assignment with state election commission this week. Anu R S, regional joint director, Kochi is likely to be the new secretary of Thiruvananthapuram corporation.
L S Deepa leaves behind a sterling and eventful stint as corporation secretary. Her uncompromising stand on compliance with norms often led to strained relations with LSGD top officials earlier. L S Deepa was instrumental in initiating various initiatives in city corporation like Clean Killiyaar mission, regulations for septic waste carriers, by-laws for advertisement hoardings,launching steps for revamping tax collection in the city and measures to switch to new tax regime. Under her leadership, corporation's tax revenues had increased considerably in the past few fiscals putting it in good stead when it came to tapping own income for Covid management activities. Even when AMRUT project was mired in controversies in other civic bodies, Trivandrum stood alone recording the highest percentage in terms of implementation in liquid waste management sector.
During her initial days as secretary of Thiruvananthapuram corporation, she mandated source level septage management in high rises as a permanent measure to save water bodies from septage contamination. The move led to serious backlash with LSGD higher officials portraying her as anti-development and responded with memos and ironically when river rejuvenation committees broached the need to have decentralised septage treatment, her stand was vindicated.
When L S Deepa was transferred in June 2018 apparently as a rebuke to her insistence on norms for high rises, former mayor V K Prasanth had rallied behind her forcing the department to cancel the transfer order. She had worked in sync both with former mayor V K Prasanth and present mayor K Sreekumar, launching new initiatives and taking steps in advance for Covid management. In the initial days of lock down, Trivandrum corporation launched a series of community kitchens and served the highest number of food packets among civic bodies in the state.