At a time when funds in the treasury have touched the nadir, forcing the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) to form a seven-member committee to check expenditure, the civic body has decided to buy electronic tabs for the mayor and his council of members.
The decision has drawn flak from the opposition councillors, who termed this as unacceptable since salaries are allegedly not being paid due to a fund crunch. As per a circular from the municipal secretary of the KMC, one such tab will be allotted to the mayor, deputy mayor and to the members of the mayor’s council (MMiCs). Such tabs will be procured at a cost, not exceeding Rs 49,000.
This decision has shocked many within the KMC as the civic body has been running low on funds, a fact that was disclosed by mayor Firhad Hakim himself as he presented a Rs 177-crore deficit budget for the fiscal year 2022-23. This deficit, added to the cumulative deficit, may increase to Rs 2,600.70 crore, as per the budget statement. Several KMC staff, who retired in 2021, alleged that they did not receive their pensions.
The corporation today issued a circular, announcing that a seven-member committee has been formed to “review the excess expenditure of different departments under KMC.” It will be headed by Tapas Chowdhury, special municipal commissioner (G&D). The committee has to submit a report to the municipal commissioner within a month.
In the wake of such tight financial conditions, the decision to allot tabs has drawn severe criticisms from opposition councillors. BJP councillor Sajal Ghosh said that the KMC is being run by shameless people, who are blowing funds away without thinking about the necessary expenditures. “Councillors are yet to get their salaries, while many retired staff awaits pension and provident fund. This is condemnable and proves that the civic body is being run like a private company,” he remarked.
Former CPM councillor Chayan Bhattacharya asked, “What is the need for tabs? There are computers and mobile phones with every member. This looks like an excess when KMC is on the verge of penury. It has to be found out whether some agency is being extended undue favours by procuring the tabs from them?”
The MMiC and TMC councillor Sandipan Saha told the media that tabs are being procured to do away with the costs of paper printing. “Before MMiC meetings, a lot of printing work is done to publish the agendas that are to be discussed. This leads to wastage of paper and we incur high printing costs. We are shifting to online mode of business for which even e-offices have been established.”