BMC to be nodal agency for LAD funds utilisation

BHUBANESWAR: The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) will now become the nodal agency for the Local Area Development (LAD) fund utilisation for the area under the corporation.  Every Member of Parliament (MP) or a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) is provided with LAD fund to develop his own constituency. The MPs are provided with Rs  2 crore per year and the MLAs with  Rs 1 crore per year of LAD fund. Prior to this, the LAD fund was spent through the Block Development Offices (BDO). “With the construction of every new building that comes under the corporation’s jurisdiction, the maintenance work is eventually handed over to the BMC. So after a consultation with the State Government, it was decided that the BMC will be the nodal agency through which all the  LAD funds will be spent,” informed BMC mayor Ananta Narayan Jena.   For any permanent construction under the corporation using the LAD fund will now require the BMC’s prior approval. The major reason for implementing this change was to bring the new constructions in the city under the BMC eye.  The work for increasing the water pipeline coverage in the city will also be sped up. The BMC has sanctioned Rs 55 lakhs to the Public Health Engineering Organisation (PHEO) for addition of  pipelines in the city. This measure has been taken to tackle the water problems that might aggravate due to summer. “The slum areas in the city and a few places that have urgent water requirements will be provided with pipeline and the places where the pipeline can not reach will be provided with tubewells,” said Jena. The PHEO will be provided with additional funds as and when required.  The sanitation of the city is also being monitored closely by the BMC officials. According to senior BMC officials, every ward has a ward officer who produces regular reports on the sanitation and hygiene conditions of his respective ward. “The major problem is the debris and construction material dumped on the roadside by the construction agencies. The BMC has started penalising the agencies for not clearing the debris after completion of construction,” said a senior BMC official.  It has now been decided that the BMC will clear the debris in the initial stages, but then the responsibility will be given to other line departments or the agencies undertaking the construction themselves. The penalisation will continue if the work is not done properly.