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Chandigarh | AAP councillors to boycott study tour to Goa, Mumbai; Congress to send only two
The trip to Goa and Mumbai, scheduled from September 9 to September 15, is aimed at studying the solid waste management and disposal system of the two cities. The Chandigarh MC House had passed the resolution for the study tour on July 29. The AAP had opposed the trip, however, Congress along with the ruling BJP, had voted in favour of it
In fresh controversy over the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led municipal corporation’s plan to organise a study tour to Goa and Mumbai, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has decided to boycott the trip while Congress said that it will be sending only two of its councillors.
The trip to Goa and Mumbai, scheduled from September 9 to September 15, is aimed at studying the solid waste management and disposal system of the two cities. The Chandigarh MC House had passed the resolution for the study tour on July 29. The AAP had opposed the trip, however, Congress along with the ruling BJP, had voted in favour of it.
As per MC’s agenda, the trip was planned to study the solid waste plant of Goa, which it claimed was quite effective in dealing with waste, with minimum inert material going to the landfill site. Goa treats approximately 250 tonnes of waste everyday and Chandigarh produces more than 550 MT waste on a daily basis.
Waste disposal had been a major irritant for the MC in the recent years, and has been impacting its performance in Swachh Survekshans (cleanliness surveys) conducted by the Central government.
It is learnt that the MC commissioner Anindita Mitra had objected to the agenda, but it was tabled following the intervention of mayor Sarbjit Kaur.
The initial plan was to send 35 total councillors just to Goa at a cost of ₹14 lakh but the House, while passing the resolution, also added Mumbai as the second destination.
The MC had on August 30 written to all councillors to give their consent for the trip by August 31. However, AAP leader Prem Garg said that all of its councillors have written back, denying consent. “Any reasonable human being can see that citizens are outraged by this senseless and criminal spending on study tours without any benefit or improvement seen on ground...MC is cruelly wasting public money for personal entertainment of its officials and councillors,” the letter from AAP councillor Jasbir Singh stated while demanding that the trip be cancelled. The letter also wonders why MC was going ahead with the trip when there is already a widespread criticism about it.
Congress, on the other hand, said that in-principal it was not against such trips but all councillors should not go to one place. Chandigarh Congress president HS Lucky said such trips should be utilised for improving governance tools in the city. “However, we are against all councillors going to a single place. They should go in groups to different places and study different aspects of governance related to civic bodies. We are only sending two councillors,” Lucky added.
When contacted, mayor Kaur said that AAP was playing politics over it. “Such trips help develop bonding. Taking all along, irrespective of party affiliations. Besides this, we can examine and recommend changes in waste disposal system of the city,” she said adding that Chandigarh MC was not the only civic body planning such trips. Recently, councillors from Telangana and Chhattisgarh were also in town to examine and learn from the initiatives Chandigarh has taken.
MC commissioner Anindita Mitra said the resolution on the trip has been sent for the approval of local urban bodies department of the Chandigarh administration. She maintained that the trip had been planned after a resolution was passed in the House. Another official added that similar trips were planned in the past as well and will be undertaken only if UT administration gives a go-ahead.
Why the criticism over the trip
For setting up the new integrated waste processing plant, IIT Ropar is in the advance stages of preparing a detailed project report and request for proposal.
The existing plant in Sector 25, would be operational by November this year, and would process more than 80% of the daily waste generated in the city.
For processing horticulture waste, a plant will be ready by November. The processing of sanitary waste and hazardous waste has already started through private firms. The MC commissioner and chief engineer had recently visited solid waste processing plants in different cities, including Mumbai.
In the last 16 years, councillors have toured Germany, Austria, Italy, Coimbatore, Uttar Pradesh, Mumbai and Ahmedabad to study their advancements in waste processing, other initiatives undertaken by respective civic agencies. These trips have often come under criticism, with many terming them as “leisure trips” with virtually no outcome or change on the ground.
