MARGAO
The first meeting of the Margao Municipal Council under the new Municipal Chairperson Damu Shirodkar on Monday adopted a host of decisions on waste collection and Sonsodo, besides measures to tone up revenue recoveries and to fill up the vacant posts.
The meeting has resolved to float the tender for sopo collection by doing away with the three years experience clause.
The meeting chaired by Shirodkar has not only resolved to grant extension for the two agencies involved in door-to-door waste collection, but to request the Director of Municipal Administration and GSUDA to accept the tenders of the two agencies.
The Council also approved a host of measures in a bid to streamline waste disposal at the Sonsodo waste management shed.
After a question posed by former Chairperson Ganashyam Shirodkar on the door-to-door collection, the Chairperson said there’s now no need to float a fresh tender, saying GSUDA had only raised a query which has now been rectified.
When the issue of extension to the recovery officer came up for discussion, the Council decided to grant another extension for the recovery officer for having recovered around Rs 52 lakhs in 21 days.
The recovery officer further pointed out the total outstanding house tax arrears is now pegged around Rs 19 crore.
Even as the Chairperson pointed out that around 30-35 per cent of business establishments are operating in the commercial capital sans trade licenses, Councilor Ganashyam demanded a white paper on the outstanding revenue recoveries.
During discussions on the 116 posts that has lapsed in the council, the Chairperson said the Municipality has decided to approach the government to revive only those posts which will benefit the civic body. Instead of reviving all the lapsed posts, he said the council should have 16 LDCs instead of nine to tone up the administration.
The tender of the sopo tender generated much heat with the opposition councilors demanding that the civic body should fix 77 lakh as the upset price for the sopo tender excluding the 18 per cent GST. Even as the Council has resolved to do away with the three year experience clause, the opposition Councilor managed to extract an assurance that the upset price should be fixed at Rs 77 lakh excluding the GST.
Expressing satisfaction that the meeting has deliberated and transacted all the business on the agenda, Chairperson Shirodkar later thanked all the Councilor for extending their cooperation to transact the business.
