Budget 2022: Chandigarh Municipal Corporation grant-in-aid up, but short of demand

Tribune News Service

Sandeep Rana

Chandigarh, February 1

Though the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation House had sought Rs981.02-cr grant-in-aid, it only got Rs545 crore in the Union Budget for 2022-23 today.

The MC House today approved a total Budget of Rs1,725.19 cr — Rs401.42 cr under the capital head and Rs1,323.77 cr under the revenue segment. The civic body has projected its own receipts at Rs616.11 crore.

Its grant-in-aid has been increased from Rs502 crore in the current fiscal to Rs545 crore for the 2022-23 fiscal, but is short of its demand.

Congress councillor Gurbax Rawat said, “The MC Budget used to be first brought to the Finance and Contract Committee meeting for minute discussion, but that did not happen this time. Since the BJP failed to get the fourth Delhi Finance Commission recommendations implemented and merge the Registering and Licensing Authority with the MC, we got less grant-in-aid.”

“Councillors were not taken into confidence on new projects. It is a directionless Budget. It has no provisions for village development. Increased income through water tariff has been estimated in the Budget. Are they going to raise the water rates from April? They have no answer.”

Mayor Sarabjit Kaur said, “The corporation has got Rs43 crore more grant-in-aid for the next fiscal. Since the Administration has got around Rs196 crore more than last time, we will request it to give 70 per cent of it to the civic body. We will also meet the Home Minister for the implementation of the commission recommendations. Ours is pro-people budget. We will get the water tariff hike cancelled.”

The commission had recommended to increase the MC’s share in the UT revenue from 17.5 per cent to 30 per cent.

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