The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has been operating without a designated City Engineer for the past three years, raising concerns about the impact on urban development. An RTI query filed by activist Sudhir Dani revealed that the crucial role has been delegated to an executive engineer who reportedly lacks an engineering degree.
The RTI activist requested information from the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) regarding the educational qualifications of engineers employed by the corporation.
Dani said that the RTI revelation was shocking as the city engineer incharge does not have an engineering degree. He added that there are officials in senior positions in the engineering department who do not have a degree in engineering. Like the Deputy Engineer and Executive engineer of (Electrical) does not have a degree in engineering. Even the Deputy Engineer (Mechanical) does not have a degree in engineering.
The document indicates that the former city engineer, Surendra Vasudev Patil, concluded his tenure on March 31, 2021. Following his retirement, executive engineer Sanjay Gopal Desai assumed responsibility for overseeing the operations of the parent department. Furthermore, he has taken on the additional charge of the vacant city engineer post until further directives are issued.
A city engineer has varied roles including planning infrastructure development works of the city, besides taking administration and technical decisions. On the contrary, an executive engineer is simply a diploma holder and works as a city engineer.
Dani expressed his intention, stating, "I plan to write to the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, and NMMC chief, urging them to assign an engineer from the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) for the vacant city engineer position."
A senior official from civic administration informed that the executive engineer has been given additional charge of the city engineer with the permission of the state government. When questioned about the prolonged vacancy lasting two years, he clarified that the onus lies with the state government to appoint the necessary official for the role.