Delhi civic body clears budget, no major changes moved

The meeting was an 11th hour approval to the financial spending proposals before the financial year ending on March 31 and, had it been delayed, could have otherwise led crucial payments to be held up

A special Municipal Corporation of Delhi meeting called to clear the civic body’s annual Budget approved on Wednesday spends of ₹16,023 crore for the 2023-24 financial year, with large allocations for sanitation, general administration (such as salaries) and education in a fiscal roadmap that was unchanged from its first iteration presented in December.

The House also approved an increase in funds for municipal press and printing of official letterheads, visiting cards and reports from ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore, citing an increased number of members due to the unification of the three erstwhile corporations. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

The meeting was an 11th hour approval to the financial spending proposals before the financial year ending on March 31 and, had it been delayed, could have otherwise led crucial payments to be held up. The proposals cleared were the same as those moved by municipal commissioner Gyanesh Bharti in December, with no major changes proposed by councillors from the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party criticised the Budget, terming it anti-middle class.

As per the budgetary allocations cleared by the House, the lion’s share — nearly 28% — will go to the sanitation sector, and 20.82% will be spent on general administration, which includes salaries and running costs. Of the remaining funds, the bulk will be spent on education (17.77%) and the public health and medical sectors (10.73%).

Around ₹667.73 crore (4.17%) will be used for the repayment of the civic body’s loans, and 3.41% of the allocation is for the maintenance of parks. All other sectors, such as licensing, community services, veterinary services etc have been allocated less than 1% of the total funds.

The number of permanent MCD posts has been slightly reduced, from 147,172 to 146,928.

The House also approved an increase in funds for municipal press and printing of official letterheads, visiting cards and reports from ₹10 lakh to ₹1 crore, citing an increased number of members due to the unification of the three erstwhile corporations.

Bharti had moved these proposals before MCD special officer Ashwini Kumar on December 8, 2022. Kumar held the powers of deliberative wing during the unification process of the MCD from May 22, 2022 till the election of Shelly Oberoi as mayor on February 22.

Typically, the municipal commissioner presents the municipal budget before the MCD standing committee in the first half of December, and the document goes through a series of revisions by zonal and subject-specific committees before it is cleared by the House before February 14.

However, due to the unification of the three erstwhile corporations, the civic body polls were held in December last year, which disrupted the timeline. The two main parties, AAP and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), then entered into a bitter fight in the House, including over the selection of nominated members “aldermen”, which led to further delays.

Despite several attempts, the powerful standing committee — an 18-member panel that controls the purse strings of MCD — has not been elected.

The election for six standing committee seats were held on February 24, but the House descended into pandemonium after mayor Oberoi declared one of the votes to be invalid. She said that a re-election would be held on February 27, but the announcement was stayed by the Delhi high court. The matter will now be heard on April 24.

Leader of the House and AAP councillor Mukesh Goyal said the budget came before them in “critical condition”. “If the budget had not been passed today (Wednesday), then it would have led to the salary of MCD staff being stopped and [to] a constitutional crisis… In the coming days the Delhi government and MCD will work together to resolve the other problems facing the people of Delhi,” Goyal said.

At the end of the three-hour budget session, the House passed 11 resolutions moved by AAP members — mostly political resolutions demanding relief for traders from sealing action, or notices regarding parking and conversion charges.

All 12 proposals moved by BJP members were shot down.

In a post-budget press conference, AAP legislator Durgesh Pathak, the party in-charge for MCD, said the steps taken by the House on Wednesday will translate to the AAP fulfilling two out of the 10 guarantees it made in the run-up to the civic body elections — relief to the trader community and regular salaries for MCD employees.

The BJP hit back, with Delhi BJP general secretary Harsh Malhotra condemned AAP for rejecting proposals brought by the BJP councillors. Malhotra said, “Rejecting the BJP proposals regarding welfare works in unauthorised colonies, group housing societies, and a proposal to waive property tax on houses up to 100 sqm, is an anti-middle-class move.”

Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said the private member resolutions passed by the AAP are not binding on the executive wing. “Had the AAP been serious or committed towards traders, it would have brought an official resolution through the mayor or would have moved the Supreme Court, which has ordered recovery of conversion charge from properties on notified roads,” he said.