Chandigarh MC chief slashes ‘entertainment charges’ by 50% in salary; asks officers to follow suit

Every month, Chandigarh municipal corporation officials get a fixed amount as an “entertainment expense” to meet the expenditure of serving “tea, coffee and refreshments” to their guests

To cut down on municipal corporation’s (MC) expenditure amid the crippling financial crisis, MC commissioner Amit Kumar on Wednesday ordered to slash “entertainment charges” from his monthly salaries by 50 percent and also asked officers to follow suit.

The entertainment expenses range from ₹4,000 per month to ₹15,000 per month, for each Chandigarh municipal corporation officer depending on their positions. (HT File)

The commissioner has now accelerated the process to curtail expenditure in the MC, and as a part of the drive, the slash in “entertainment changers” started first with his own salary. Kumar asked other officers to surrender their “entertainment charges” voluntarily.

Every month, MC officials get a fixed amount as an “entertainment expense” to meet the expenditure of serving “tea, coffee and refreshments” to their guests. The entertainment expenses range from ₹4,000 per month to ₹15,000 per month, for each officer depending on their positions. Civic body’s finance panel had in October 2023 approved ₹5,000 per month for each councillor as “entertainment expense”.

As per estimated figures, MC can save ₹50,000- ₹80,000 per month by slashing the “entertainment charges” by 50%.

It is pertinent to mention that MC is facing an acute fund crunch. In May, the ongoing fiscal mess forced MC to halt all development works across the city. Such is the crisis that the corporation has even put the already long-pending road carpeting work on hold and is also struggling to pay the salaries of outsourced staff. Compounding its woes, even the UT administration has refused to release any additional grant.