MCG’s agenda on exchange of revenue roads faces resistance in House meeting

The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) during its House meeting on Monday approved an agenda, which allows for the exchange of MCG’s revenue roads with the

The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) during its House meeting on Monday approved an agenda, which allows for the exchange of MCG’s revenue roads with the land of private builders that amount to the same monetary value.

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The agenda, however, was not unanimously passed and faced resistance, with one of the councillors boycotting the session on the issue.

The agenda was proposed by the MCG’s planning branch officials while citing that they had received two proposals from private builders to claim MCG revenue roads falling within Sihi and Ghata villages and that the two builders had offered to exchange their lands both falling in Garhi Harsaru.

Revenue roads are a major issue in the city. Such a road is often surrounded on all sides by a condominium or a township and serves no purpose to the residents of the area. Revenue roads were essentially stretches which provided connectivity to villages. With the city developing rapidly since the 1990s, village land was sold to private builders, resulting in revenue roads being surrounded by residential areas from all sides and becoming redundant.

Mayor Madhu Azad, who chairs the MCG House meeting, approved this agenda along with the support of the majority of councillors. RS Rathee, MCG councillor of Ward 34, however, wanted a discussion on the matter. Azad, in return, said that since the agenda was already approved by the majority of the House, no further discussion was needed. This led to a verbal duel between the two, prompting Rathee to boycott the meeting midway.

“The collector rate of MCG’s land in Sihi and Ghata villages is nearly five times the value of the lands offered by the private builders in Garhi Harsaru. The size of the land offered by the builders is almost the same size as the MCG’s revenue roads. By our estimates, this would lead to the civic body incurring losses in excess of ₹80 crore. Hence, I wanted a discussion on the matter,” said Rathee.

In its official release, MCG stated that Azad had directed Rathee to issue a public apology as he “broke the dignity” of the House.

“Out of 34 councillors, 33 councillors had approved the agenda on revenue roads. One councillor unnecessarily wanted a discussion on the matter and delay the time of the House, especially when more pressing issues also needed to be addressed within the limited time available. After this, he boycotted the house and made personal statements against me before the media. The House has already condoned his behaviour; hence, I have directed him to issue a public apology,” said Azad.

New office building

In the meeting, the model for the proposed office building of MCG in Sector 14 along MG Road was also put before the House. MCG commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh said that this proposed office building is going to be built on around two acres of land near Vyapar Sadan and will be a “fully modern” office, equipped with various facilities.

He further said that as per the design plan, there will be three basement parking in which a total of 450 vehicles can be parked. In addition, it will have four conference halls and a library. The design of the building will be such that it will have plenty of light during the day. A citizen facilitation centre (CFC) will be located on the first floor of the building.

“An auditorium with a seating capacity of 650 will also be built. Additionally, a dispensary and a crutch will also be arranged. The building will also have a space for a town hall to host meetings. Along with these facilities, arrangements will also be made to lease 2-3 floors of the building, around 70,000 square feet area for commercial ventures so that the cost of total construction and maintenance cost can be recovered through it,” said Singh.

MCG’s main office is located in Sector 34 on a monthly lease of around ₹20 lakh from the Haryana Shahri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP). Besides the rent, the office is located on the outskirts of the city, making commute a major hassle.

The matter of irregularities in the lifting of construction and demolition (C&D) waste was also raised by various councillors, upon which it was unanimously decided to set up an inquiry committee to look into the matter.

The matter of irregularities in MCG’s street-vending zones was also raised by councillors. It was decided that supervision of this task would be taken away from the City Project Officer (CPO) and handed over to the MCG’s executive officer. Further, it was decided in the meeting that a detailed report on the MCG’s street vending zones should also be submitted before all councillors and concerned senior MCG officials within 10 days to identify possible discrepancies and areas which need to be rectified.