Mayor meets Chandigarh Administrator, seeks funds for cash-strapped civic body

Mayor Kuldeep Kumar today met UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria and requested him to look personally into the matter for strengthening the financial position of the Municipal Corporation (MC) and requested him to release the instalment of the quarterly grant-in-aid instead of monthly basis as per the past practice.

In a letter to the Administrator, the Mayor said the MC remained dependent on financial assistance provided by the Chandigarh Administration in the shape of grant-in-aid. In addition to this, the MC’s own revenue was also being utilised to meet the day-to-day expenditure and other development works being undertaken by the MC.

The letter said the MC was providing the facilities to the general public on no profit, no loss basis. It has collected around Rs 323 crore in revenue through property tax, water connections and bills, bookings of various spaces, Apni Mandis, advertisements, auctions penalties and rent from MC shops.

The letter further says the revenue receipts are not sufficient to cope up with the financial crunch of the MC. Therefore, necessary instructions may be issued to the Chandigarh Administration to release the proceeds of taxes under the provisions of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976.

The total revenue of MC for the financial year 2023-24 was Rs 1,042 crore inclusive of the Rs 560 crore grant-in-aid received from the Chandigarh Administration. The expenditure of the Municipal Corporation during the financial year 2023-24 was Rs 1,143 crore. The difference between the receipt and expenditure is approximately Rs 100 crore.

Now, for the 2024-25 financial year, Rs 200 crore are required in addition to the sanctioned grant-in-aid. Besides, expenditure on account of arrear, salary and pension under the Seventh Central Pay Commission, increase in wages rate, electricity charges and other miscellaneous expenditure on the various ongoing projects have also increased.