Four months after elections, MCG House yet to meet in Gurgaon
Om Birla
on Thursday spoke about the importance of regular meetings among elected representatives in municipal corporations.
Ironically, this was being said when one of the two municipal corporations of the city — MCG — failed to conduct its inaugural House meeting since the election results were announced on March 12, although a special budget meeting took place on April 8.
The LS speaker — while addressing national conference of urban local bodies (ULBs) in Manesar — said he saw in several municipalities that House meetings "did not happen for a year".
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Birla said meetings should occur every one to two months to discuss the city's challenges. Regular meetings hold the officials accountable and bring more transparency, he said.
"When elected officials pose questions during these sessions, it enhances transparency and accountability within municipal corporations.
Through observations across various municipal corporations, it is evident that meetings are either not conducted for extended periods, sometimes up to a year, or when convened, they are disrupted, leading to agenda approvals without proper deliberation. It is crucial to maintain regular meeting schedules, preferably every one to two months.
The meetings should incorporate a zero hour. Moreover, proper discussion should be held on the budget," the LS speaker said.
MCG mayor Raj Rani Malhotra could not be reached despite repeated attempts.
The councillors told TOI they have been regularly enquiring about the House meetings. However, the meeting schedule has not been fixed yet. Councillor Kuldeep Yadav, who was present at the ULB conference, said, "Every councillor wants the House meetings to happen every month. A meeting of the councillors with the city mayor should happen every fortnight.
However, nothing is being done about it. A special budget meeting was held for budget approval.
The councillors are keen to address ward-specific concerns through regular House meetings."
Councillor Pardeep Padam said, "After the national conference of the ULB gets over, some of the councillors have decided to meet the mayor and MCG officials to push for the House meeting. It has been more than three months since we were elected, but a House meeting to discuss our ward issues has not taken place yet."
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