MUMBAI: At a time when the BMC faces a fund crunch, netas are on a spending spree using civic funds to distribute freebies ranging from jute bags to photocopy machines and idli batter grinders. BMC has cut its budget by Rs 2,500 crore, but corporators bagged Rs 892 crore as part of discretionary development funds.
All 227 corporators get Rs 60 lakh each as development funds. Besides, the standing committee has allotted Rs 640 crore in budgetary amendments based on representations by individual corporators and the general body has allocated another Rs 116 crore for remaining needs.
BMC corporators get Rs 900cr to splurge, with no checks
Despite a squeeze in finances due to the pandemic, BMC corporators have nearly Rs 900 crore at their disposal to woo the electorate in the runup to civic elections next year None of this is for asset creation (read, construction of roads, bridges, pavements). These are funds available for beautification, repair, and welfare, depending on what the politician thinks is essential to impress his constituents.
Activists and opposition parties have pointed out that such discretionary spending amidst a financial crisis would set a bad precedent. What’s more, funds are not evenly distributed – local representatives in many areas have received a token amount while party leaders have cornered large sums.
Leading the pack is Shiv Sena’s standing committee chairman Yashwant Jadhav with Rs 33.4 crore (see graphic), more than all the other civic leaders put together.
Items sanctioned for distribution in wards as welfare include photocopying machines, laptops and tablets, idli-dosa grinders, food trucks, sewing machines and sanitary pads. Corporators can also use their funds to distribute dustbins to housing societies to segregate waste or spend on street or garden furniture.
Samajwadi Party corporator Rais Shaikh said, “So much should not be spent as unforeseen revenue expenditure. These funds must be made part of capital expenditure and all corporators should be asked to seek funds based on a detailed plan for their electoral wards.”
Apart from the size of the spend, there are questions about the process for procuring items for distribution as well as the eligibility criteria for selecting beneficiaries. For dispensing small items like jute bags, there is no eligibility, said an official, but for larger products like sewing machines and food trucks, there would be. “We have eligibility criteria. For instance, they must be residents of Mumbai. For photocopying machines, they must be disabled more than 40%, and certified by a designated hospital. They must be 18-60 years of age and have an annual income of less than Rs 1 lakh. We have similar criteria for disabled persons who can be given two wheelers with side wheels,” the official said.
However, the official admitted that it was difficult to enforce eligibility. “We can only check the address and income certificate. If applicants have an orange or yellow ration card or a below poverty line certificate, they are eligible. For items like sewing machines, women need to be trained and certified. But it is difficult to check this,” the official said.
Given such concerns about leakage and wastage, Shaikh said the Opposition had demanded cuts in expenditure. “Big ticket projects have been hit. But there is virtually no control on the way ward level funds are spent. So there needs to be a reform in the civic budget,” he said.
For instance, Sena’s Jadhav has bought 84,000 jute bags for around Rs 1.4 crore. Each bag costs Rs 161 and will be distributed in an electoral ward with around 50,000 voters. Congress corporator Ravi Raja, the opposition leader in BMC, too is giving out tablet PCs to students worth Rs 1 crore.
“This spending is nothing but a scam. At the ward level there is no check on who is getting what. Officials only check if beneficiaries are residents of the ward,” said BJP corporator Vinod Mishra, party leader in the BMC. RTI activist Anil Galgali said citizen groups must be vigilant in such a situation to monitor spending.
Additional municipal commissioner Sanjeev Jaiswal said the process works as per the demands made by the corporators in the budget.