Unified MCD’s first budget gets approval at ₹15,276 crore
The Hindu
Budget doesn’t have provisions for addressing salary delays and growing financial crunch: MCD official
The first budget of the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi has been approved by its Special Officer at an estimated expenditure of ₹15,276 crore for the financial year 2022-23, according to documents accessed by The Hindu.
Senior MCD officials confirmed the development.
The new budget estimate is a collation of the earlier approved budgets of the three erstwhile corporations — North, South and East, while their total estimated expenditure stood at ₹16,394 crore. The estimated expenditure of the South civic body was ₹4,915. 58 crore, while the estimates for the North and East corporations were ₹7,504.92 crore and ₹3,970.50 crore, respectively, according to the documents.
Asked about the reduction in the estimated expenditure of the unified budget, compared to that of the erstwhile corporations, a senior MCD official said cited downsizing — three commissioner posts to one, a cutdown on inter-departmental expenses and other expenditures.
“There are no expenses for the deliberative wing, which included Mayors and councillors as they are yet to be elected. However, there are no new provisions in the budget. Whatever was proposed in the erstwhile budgets continues to remain,” the official said.
The official added that the budget does not have any provisions aimed at addressing salary delays and the growing financial crunch, while civic officials have been instructed to “pull up their socks and ensure that the internal revenue is enhanced”.
“The difference that comes with this budget is that a single management handles the civic body, and there is uniformity in the rates of property tax, license fees and other charges for people across the city,” the official added.