New Delhi, May 30 (IANS) The Delhi government Monday decided to split the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) into three smaller units while retaining the number of wards at the existing total of 272.
Speaking to reporters, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said: ‘The cabinet has taken the decision to ensure smooth functioning of the MCD. Before finalising the decision to split the civic body, we had consulted several other top party leaders.’
Dikshit said a four-member committee has been appointed to finalise the setting up of the new units. After that, a proposal will be sent to the union home ministry for approval.
The members of the committee are: D.M. Spolia, finance secretary; M.M. Kutty, principal secretary to the chief minister; S.P. Garg, law secretary; and R.K. Srivastava, urban development secretary.
‘The committee will be submitting its report in three-four days,’ Diskhit told reporters.
According to sources, the cabinet decision came after Dikshit met Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on the division of the MCD.
Dikshit described the split as a step forward in the direction of efficient and responsive municipal administration in the national capital.
The MCD is proposed to be split into three zones – north, south and east. People living in west Delhi will come under the south zone civic agency.
‘It has been decided to restructure the present MCD into three separate corporations, there will be a separate municipal authority for east, south and north in the capital. This set-up will streamline the delivery of services by the municipal bodies more efficiently,’ she added.
The chief minister also said that the cabinet decided to reserve 50 percent of the total seats for women under the new set-up. This will prove to be a historical step in furthering the process of women empowerment in the capital, she said.
Dikshit has been campaigning for splitting the MCD for the last four months. The move has been facing stiff opposition from the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which controls the civic body, and some Congress leaders in the MCD.
The MCD is the largest civic agency in India and the second biggest in Asia, after the Tokyo local agency, in terms of geographical area. The civic agency handles 96 percent of Delhi’s land area and provides services to 98 percent of its population.
