Public disinclined to join HDMC ward committees?

Hubballi: Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation's efforts to form ward committees of 11 members, including an area corporator, in each ward are not yielding the desired results.
There has been no overwhelming response from the general public to be a member of their respective ward committees, forcing the HDMC to extend the deadline for receiving applications for ward committees twice since April 5. The HDMC has set June 17 as the deadline for receiving applications from interested individuals to serve on ward committees in all 82 wards. The main reason for the poor response is said to be a lack of awareness about this new concept.
“It is wrong to say that there is a lack of awareness among people because, through our collaboration with Janaagraha NGO, we have not left any stone unturned in educating citizens about ward committees. We held workshops and seminars in both Hubballi and Dharwad to educate people about the role and responsibilities of ward committees. People have also responded positively to our efforts,” said HDMC commissioner Dr B Gopal Krishna.
“We extended the application deadline following public demand. We agree that we are not getting the expected response from some wards, particularly in the extension areas, and that many educated people are still hesitant to actively participate in the process of forming ward committees,” he said.
“The twin cities have 82 wards, so we will need to form 82 ward committees. Each committee will have ten members, including two members from SC and ST category, three women, and others, with the area corporator serving as the committee's chairman by default. So, in order to form all 82 ward committees, we need to receive 820 applications. However, we have received over 250 applications so far and expect to receive more in the coming days. T here will be no further extensions after the June 15 deadline. To raise awareness, we have begun ward-wise campaigns involving NGO members who hold meetings with people, distribute forms, and explain in detail how ward committees are important for the development of the city and their respective ward,” he added.
Dr MC Sindhur, a civic activist, stated that if a corporation solves citizens' problems within a reasonable time frame, people will believe in its administration and be motivated to join ward panels.