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After truce, mayor calls back-to-back civic meetings
Mayor writes to municipal commissioner for meetings of the LMC executive committee and house on November 13 and 14 to passed the revised budget
After a civic standoff that took shape last month, Lucknow mayor Sushma Kharkwal has finally called a truce following the intervention of a minister and written to municipal commissioner Gaurav Kumar, directing him to convene a meeting of the executive committee on November 13 and a meeting of the house on November 14 to pass the revised budget so that developmental works are not stalled.
The mayor had earlier refused to call the meetings, insisting on receiving reports of the previous house and executive committee meetings directly from the municipal commissioner. The municipal commissioner, however, maintained that the reports had already been sent to her by email.
The impasse had delayed the approval of the revised municipal budget, putting several development projects on hold. With the latest move, normalcy is expected to return to the functioning of the municipal body, allowing key works to proceed without further disruption.
According to people familiar with the matter, both meetings are expected to be stormy, as corporators from the BJP are preparing to grill senior municipal officers over inaction on resolutions cleared in previous sittings held on September 4 and 9.
Despite being passed, the proposals reportedly remain stuck due to administrative delays.
The last two attempts to hold the executive committee meetings on October 24 and 30 were adjourned due to chaos and lack of consensus on the agenda.
The mayor had earlier said that no further meetings would be called until demanded by the municipal administration. Her sudden letter on Monday, however, caught many by surprise.
“The executive committee and general house meetings are essential for the city’s development. It’s important to confirm what action has been taken on previously approved proposals,” said the mayor.
In her letter, the mayor has also directed mandatory attendance for all officers and members in both meetings. Absentees will be noted, and notices may be issued to those failing to appear.
Meanwhile, people privy to the issue indicated that the mayor had already held a strategy meeting with BJP corporators at her camp office on Sunday, finalising plans to raise issues related to sanitation, civic maintenance, and pending proposals.
For now, the municipal administration has barely two days to prepare the agenda, compile pending proposal reports, and finalise all procedural formalities.
Corporators are relieved that now the revised budget would be passed and pending development works in their wards would be completed.
