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Majhi Vasundhara Abhiyan: Maharashtra govt begins assessing local bodies’ performance
The Maharashtra environment and climate change department has begun the assessment of 395 urban local bodies (ULBs) and 304 panchayati raj institutions (PRIs) as part of its Majhi Vasundhara Abhiyan, launched last October
The Maharashtra environment and climate change department has begun the assessment of 395 urban local bodies (ULBs) and 304 panchayati raj institutions (PRIs) as part of its Majhi Vasundhara Abhiyan, launched last October. Over the next five-six weeks, the ULBs and PRIs will be evaluated through a two-step process to check their compliance with the tasks mandated under the initiative.
These include enhancement of green cover and biodiversity, building solid waste management infrastructure, taking steps for water conservation, improving energy efficiency, implementing awareness programmes and getting citizens to take the Majhi Vasundhara e-pledge to show their commitment towards protecting the environment. These tasks have been spread out over five broad indicators – vayu (air), bhumi (earth), jal (water), agni (energy) and akash (education and enhancement).
“From last October to March 2021, the ULBs and PRIs were given six months to implement certain tasks, which overlap with the mandate of other state and central schemes, like Maharashtra’s Vanmahotsav plantation drive or the Centre’s Swachh Bharat Mission. For a fairer assessment, we are also considering steps that ULBs have taken within the ambit of the indicators between January 2020 and March 2021,” said a spokesperson with the environment department.
There are 22 specific (and weighted) tasks assigned to the various rural and urban local bodies. They include planting indigenous trees, implementing adequate waste segregation, treatment and composting facilities, promotion of non-motorised transport and rainwater harvesting, among several others.
The first step of the evaluation process will be a clerical desktop assessment, which has been outsourced to a third-party agency and is already underway, officials confirmed. Compliance data submitted by ULBs and PRIs will be assessed, and the organisation will be ranked using a normalised score.
The top 50% scorers will be subject to a second-level field inspection and citizen feedback survey, which will be outsourced to a second independent agency, and is expected to begin during the first week of May.
“From those selected for field survey, there will be three winners under every vertical. The top three will be each picked out of 43 AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) cities, 226 municipalities, 126 nagar panchayats and 272 villages. Their claims will all be verified in person before scores are assigned,” said the spokesperson, adding that standardised feedback will be taken from between 250-500 citizens in each area, or 0.005% of the area’s population (whichever greater).
“The assessment is already underway, and we will aim to complete it within the month so that the best-performing urban and rural local bodies can be felicitated on June 5, World Environment Day,” said Manisha Mhaiskar, principal secretary, environment and climate change department, adding that this exercise is proposed to be conducted annually, to encourage ULBs and PRIs to continue work launched under the Majhi Vasundhara Abhiyan.
