Councillors from opposition parties criticized the proposed budget 2023-2024 by Kolkata Municipal Corporation during the discussion session today. The annual budget for the next fiscal was tabled by mayor of the civic body Firhad Hakim on Friday.
Councillors from the Left, Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party came down on the same platform to point out the shortcomings of the budget. The CPM councillor Nandita Roy pointed out issues like shortage of manpower in solid waste management, road repairs and lighting. According to the councillor of Ward 103, water metres have been installed in some wards of the KMC. However, water taxes are not to be levied. The only CPM councillor at the House, presently, suggested the civic body to levy taxes along with water metres in highrises. The councillor also alleged that due to poor quality of hot mix, road repair works need to be carried out repeatedly.
Wasim Ansari, Congress councillor from Ward 137 pointed out: “In Borough XV there are 27 schools but there are no teachers in them. On the other hand, there are some of the schools with sufficient number of teachers but fewer students.” The councillor urged the civic body to appoint teachers in the KMC-run schools of the borough as there are many children studying there.
Praising and congratulating the civic body for tax collections, six times BJP councillor from Ward 22, Meena Devi Purohit, underscored that even after six years of collapse of the bridge at Burrabazar, the problems of the local residents continue to prevail. The councillor also highlighted problems of drainage and shortage of manpower are yet to be addressed by the civic body