Mayor pulls up B&R officials over delay in Smart City project files

The Finance and Contract Committee (F&CC) meeting held on Thursday on the Municipal Corporation (MC) premises witnessed sharp remarks from Mayor Vaneet Dhir, who expressed displeasure over the delay in submission of files related to the Smart City projects by the Building and Roads (B&R) Department.

The Mayor questioned officials on why the files had not been forwarded for review despite repeated reminders. He reminded that he had already sent a letter on October 8, seeking an update on three major Smart City projects — the vertical garden, smart roads, and the canal beautification project. However, no response had been received so far. He told The Tribune that an ultimatum has been given to the officials that if they fail to submit files, action will be taken against them. "I told them that this is not acceptable and action will be taken," he said.

The issue was discussed at length during the meeting, with several members urging the department to ensure better coordination and timely execution of Smart City initiatives.

This is not for the first time when the Mayor has asked the officials to be prepared with every detail related to various projects.

Besides this, the F&CC approved development works worth crores under various heads, including desilting of sewer line, installation of tubewells at various places, laying of storm sewer at Gujja Peer Road, purchase of animal catcher vehicle, etc. The meeting was attended by Senior Deputy Mayor Balbir Singh, Deputy Mayor Malkit Singh, councillors Kavita Seth and Hitesh Aggarwal.

Officials said the approved projects would be executed in a phased manner to ensure proper utilisation of funds.