Ponnam blames previous BRS government for the State’s dire financial straits

Ponnam blames previous BRS government for the State’s dire financial straits

No clear solution emerged out of the Wednesday’s review meeting held by Minister for Transport, and in-charge for the city, Ponnam Prabhakar, for the financial doldrums that the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has found itself in.

The day-long meeting ended with the Minister promising ₹10 crore from the funds allotted for constituency development, if the corporation could submit proposals.

Apart from assuring that the devolution of funds to the GHMC will be continued in the same manner as in the previous regime, the Minister promised to take the issue to the Chief Minister’s notice and if need be, take the Mayor and Commissioner along to represent the matter to him.

Blaming the previous BRS government for the State’s dire financial straits, Mr. Prabhakar said the State with ₹16,000 surplus funds at bifurcation, is now in ₹8 lakh crore debt. This is apart from ₹40,000-50,000 crore pending bills, and proceedings given to the tune of ₹1.93 lakh crore. While GHMC’s pending bills for engineering section alone hover at about ₹2,000 crore, the proposals in the pipeline were of ₹1,600 crore worth, he said.

In such a situation, the government needs to prioritise the projects, the Minister reportedly said in the meeting. He advised the GHMC authorities to devise ways to generate revenues without additional burden on people. Corporate social responsibility, and concessions on payment of tax arrears are a few means suggested by him.

Seeking to dispel rumours about impending drinking water scarcity, the Minister assured that there is enough water in the reservoirs to see the city through the summer. The water level is more than the dead storage in Nagarjunasagar as against the propaganda by certain persons, he said, and asked the GHMC officials to allay fears by organising meetings at zonal level.

All measures are being taken to ward off water scarcity in the city, and a special officer will be appointed for coordination among various departments, he assured while addressing the media after the meeting.