Municipal commissioner, elected members differ over supplementary budget

PUNE Post presentation of 2020-21 budget for Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) differences have cropped up between municipal commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad and elected

PUNE Post presentation of 2020-21 budget for Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) differences have cropped up between municipal commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad and elected members over implementing supplementary budget system in PMC.

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The chairperson of the standing committee, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), Hemant Rasane, on February 26 presented a Rs 7,390 crore budget for the year 2020-21, while Gaikwad had presented a draft budget of Rs 6,229 crore January 27, 2020.

Gaikwad said that from next year PMC would follow the system of the supplementary budget. He said, “Maharashtra government follows a supplementary budget system where a review of the budget is taken in the middle of a financial year and the amount allocated is revised and reshuffled. PMC would do this exercise in either November or December 2020.”

Rasane meanwhile has opposed the idea of supplementary budget and said that this system will not work in a civic body.

Rasane in the presence of municipal commissioner said, “Not only elected members, but many times the officials from the administration come before the standing committee and demand to divert funds from one project to another. Many times it is logical and is approved by the committee.”

“So instead of waiting for a supplementary budget, the standing committee will divert the funds whenever necessary,” said Rasane.

Congress leader Arvind Shinde said, “Commissioner had made this announcement without taking in confidence any political party. We are waiting for the ruling party’s stand, whether they will accept the commissioner’s suggestion or no.”