Standing committee clears proposals of Rs 3.5 cr in two minutes

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

Administrative proposals worth Rs 3.5 crore were approved in just two minutes at Tuesday’s standing committee meeting of the municipal corporation. All 14 members present gave unanimous approval, without taking the trouble to discuss even a single proposal. Allegations had already been raised that some tenders were ‘managed’, some controversial, and others involved wasteful expenditure worth lakhs.

The meeting began at 11.45 am with the singing of Vande Mataram. Chairman Anil Makariye approved the minutes of the previous meeting, following which proposals numbered 22 to 31 on the agenda were swiftly cleared with a chorus of ‘yes’ from members.

‘Managed’ tenders cleared without question

A proposal to purchase sports equipment worth Rs 40 lakh for students in 50 municipal schools included 102 different items. Three bidders, Richa Sports, Shree Sports, and Mahakaleshwar Sports, participated. Despite higher rates quoted by Richa and Shree Sports compared to Mahakaleshwar, the tender was approved, raising concerns that it had been ‘managed’.

Questions ignored

A proposal to spend Rs 36.87 lakh on maintenance of traffic signals across Zones 1 to 5 was passed without discussion. Corporator Matin Khan questioned why a Rs 29.16 lakh expense, incurred during the Covid period for supplying tents, chairs, tables, water jars, and refreshments by Gajanan Vidhate, was being approved after several years. His query, however, was ignored and the proposal passed.

No discussion on zoo repairs either

A Rs 1.51 crore proposal for maintenance of 14 fountains in the city was also approved without scrutiny. Similarly, a Rs 49 lakh tender for repairing animal enclosures at Siddharth Garden zoo, set to be relocated to the zoological park at Mitmita, was cleared without a word from corporators.