150,000-strong municipal corporation of Delhi to get a firm for headcount study

The official said Ernst and Young has started the audit which will compare the number of staff before the trifurcation in 2012 with the current strength.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has roped in a multinational consultancy to conduct an independent audit for determining the number of workers and officers required by the civic body after the unification of the erstwhile North, South and East civic bodies, a senior civic officials said on Wednesday.

Officials said the audit is expected to be completed by June 15. (HT Archive)

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The official, associated with the central establishment department -- the cadre controlling department for the civic body -- said Ernst and Young has started the audit which will compare the number of employees before the trifurcation in 2012 with the current staff strength, and the hierarchy after the unification in May last year.

“The audit is expected to be completed by June 15, and the final requirement of posts will be presented before the House of elected councillors in July,” the official added asking not to be named.

HT reported on March 31 that the Aam Admi Party MCD dispensation has decided to undertake a third-party independent study to finalise the post-unification restructuring of the executive wing of the civic body.

Currently, MCD has around 150,000 posts at various levels.

While clearing the annual budget on March 29, the MCD House resolved that the current approval for the staff strength and hierarchies will be valid for the next three months. “Resolved that the schedule of establishment proposed may be passed up to three months (June 30, 2023) and a fresh study of posts viz-a-viz posts that existed before trifurcation may be done through any agency within three months, and accordingly a fresh schedule of establishment be prepared to identify excess posts,” the House resolution said. The current schedule has 147,172 posts distributed over 30 departments.

The schedule of establishment is the document which acts as the blueprint that organises the structures and hierarchy of the corporation’s officials. This includes their designations, grades and hierarchy and their salaries, fee and allowances.

Responding to HT’s query about the ongoing audit, Ernst and Young (E&Y) said that the company will not comment on any engagement specific matter as a policy.

An MCD spokesperson, however, confirmed that Ernst and Young has been hired for the audit and the process is currently underway.

A second MCD official, who also confirmed that E&Y is conducting the audit, said that unless a fresh schedule of establishment is passed by the House before its expiry on June 30, employees will not be able to draw their salaries.

“We are trying to wrap up the process early so that an approval can be sought before June 30,” the second official added, requesting anonymity.

The MCD was trifurcated in 2011-12 into North, South and East corporations. This led to triplication of several posts such as chief engineer, municipal health officer, engineer-in-chief, additional commissioner, horticulture and veterinary director and others.

The MCD was unified through an Act of Parliament last year ahead of the municipal elections slated to be held in April, 2022. The unified body came into existence on May 22, 2022. “The number of senior posts increased during the trifurcation leading to promotions of various employees. During the merger, additional posts were created to accommodate the serving officials. Many of these posts may be reduced in a phased manner,” the senior official added.

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Promise of a leaner and more efficient civic bureaucracy was one of the stated objectives of the MCD unification. One of the largest civic bodies in the country, the MCD comprises of two main wings. The executive wing, which consists of the officials and workers, and is headed by the Centre- appointed municipal commissioner; and the and deliberative wing that is made up of the elected councillors. The municipal secretary office acts as a link between the two wings.