Chandigarh MC House meeting: Uproar over functioning of waste plant in Dadumajra
Congress’s senior deputy mayor Jasbir Singh Bunty and deputy mayor Taruna Mehta questioned the poor upkeep and alleged mismanagement at the facility; the two had recently inspected the plant and flagged glaring lapses in its operations
The General House meeting of the Chandigarh municipal corporation (MC) on Tuesday witnessed an uproar after serious concerns were raised over the functioning of the Solid Waste Processing Plant in Dadumajra.
Congress’s senior deputy mayor Jasbir Singh Bunty and deputy mayor Taruna Mehta questioned the poor upkeep and alleged mismanagement at the facility. The two had recently inspected the plant and flagged glaring lapses in its operations.
Sharing her observations, deputy mayor Mehta said, “During our visit, we found heaps of unprocessed garbage, particularly discarded clothes, lying near the dry waste processing unit. There were only a handful of employees at work and when questioned, the plant manager informed us that several staff members were also deployed at the waste segregation plant. Interestingly, these employees are drawing salaries from both departments while working limited hours simultaneously at both locations.”
Raising similar concerns, senior deputy mayor Bunty said, “While Chandigarh has been ranked second in the Swachhta Survekshan, the situation on the ground tells a different story. The companies assigned the job of waste processing have been paid substantially, yet their output remains unsatisfactory. Garbage continues to remain unprocessed, and more worrying is the fact that municipal officials are turning a blind eye to these lapses.”
The issue quickly escalated into a heated exchange as councillors from the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) joined in to target the BJP-led civic body over deteriorating sanitation conditions in the city.
In response to the mounting pressure, the mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla adjourned the House proceedings for 15 minutes. However, neither the mayor nor any MC official responded to the pointed questions raised by the deputy mayor and senior deputy mayor, further fuelling the discontent.
“The senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor were not ready to listen to the officials’ version, even when they tried to speak. I had even asked them to wait for the zero hour (at the end of the meeting), but to no avail”, said Mayor Babla.
MC’s financial crisis may hit city’s Swachh Survekshan ranking: MC Commissioner
Chandigarh municipal commissioner Amit Kumar on Tuesday raised serious concerns over the civic body’s deteriorating financial condition, warning that the city may soon drop out of the top 100 in the Swachh Survekshan rankings. “We currently have no funds to start any development work or improve sanitation facilities. Road re-carpeting or beautification of parks and city is not even possible in this state,” he said during the House meeting, urging immediate financial reforms.
Councillors walk out of House meeting, session adjourned to maintain quorum
The Chandigarh MC House meeting on Tuesday was disrupted as several councillors left midway after discussing their preferred agendas, leading to a lack of quorum around 5.50 pm. With only eight councillors, including nominated members, remaining, the session was adjourned for 15 minutes. The mayor had to request BJP councillors to return to ensure passage of pending proposals. Notably, only two Congress and one AAP councillor stayed till the end, while senior leaders like leader of opposition Jaswinder Kaur and AAP’s Yogesh Dhingra left early despite the presence of officials.
Approved agendas by Chandigarh MC
MC invited a private firm to revive its old Rose Club in Sector 16. Operations and maintenance to be handed over for the PPP model.
MC to invite private firms to operate and maintain gyms in community centres at minimal membership fee for the city residents.
Operation and maintenance of city gaushalas through NGOs
Inviting private firms to maintain fountains in various green belts and gardens, with MC offering advertising space but with monthly advertising fee
MC to implement ‘Oustee Quota’ to provide benefits to residents on auctioning 7.9 acres of residential land in Manimajra.
Agenda Deferred
MC House deferred the MC’s proposal to hand over the operations and processing of construction and demolition (C&D) waste to a private firm. At present, the civic body, in collaboration with an outsourced agency, is overseeing the collection, transportation, and processing of C&D waste generated across the city.
