The current panel of the Corporation of the City of Panaji have practically stumbled across the finish line of their current tenure, which started in early 2011. For five years, Panaji has had four Mayors, a lot of small routine work completed, lakhs of income that wasn’t collected and still faces a lot of issues that were carried over from the previous dispensation, namely traffic congestion, parking problems and poor garbage management, to name a few.
With the elections due on March 6, the four Mayors gave The Goan Everyday their views on their own terms. All of them claimed to have completed work that they set out to do. They weren’t wrong. Some of them even got funds assured for projects that eventually never saw the light of day as power passed from one to the other. Five years after the last elections, there will undoubtedly be citizens wondering whether their votes have any power at all.
It’s too early to pass judgement on the future of the CCP and Panaji in turn. But, perhaps it’s time enough to take stock of what has happened so far and who and what missed the bus. All four Mayors completed a lot of routine work. Trucks for ferrying garbage were purchased, as was one for trimming trees and foliage. A garbage cell was created, headed by a co-opted member, and then subsequently scrapped. Money was sanctioned for beautifying gardens and the area around the Panaji church, cleaning up the St Inez creek and more. Not everything happens. So, in some cases, the money was sent back. Panaji even missed crores in funds under the JNNURM scheme, which would have given this city a massive boost. All this happened because of poor planning and time management.
If one takes a look at Panaji now, apart from a few beautified gardens and areas, the basic problems that existed in 2010-11 still do. There has been no breakthrough in traffic management and parking allocations. The pay parking area in Patto is being used but at a negligible rate, simply due to the lack of public transport to ferry people into the city. A recent plan to turn many roads into one way streets has succeeded in managing traffic to some extent, but when one looks at the big picture, that success is minor. Areas like 18 June Road and around Garcia de Orta are major bottlenecks that need proper solutions. The poor management in reconstructing the road from Miramar to Dona Paula has only made matters worse. Rs 1.5 crore arrears have yet to be collected from the Panaji market vendors, despite a court order and a probe by the Public Accounts Committee.
All these failures do show the CCP in poor light, but there is also a question of whether a rotating Mayor’s chair hampers the cause to a large extent. Politics in the corporation is one major obstacle to getting anything done, but when you have mayors changing every year or so, all with different ideals and projects in mind, nothing can get done. The ‘progress’ of the current CCP panel is evidence enough. Panaji has to contribute over Rs 200 crore to the Smart City scheme. Where is this money going to come from?
The CCP needs to fight for more autonomy from the local MLA in running this city. But, the rotating chair is probably as effective as shooting oneself in the foot.
