MARGAO: The Margao Municipal Council, in its attempt to recover revenues, has issued notices to all the defaulters to pay their outstanding taxes and fees. However, despite the severe cash crunch the civic body has procured a brand new vehicle for the chairperson for a whopping Rs 16 lakh. The vehicle arrived on Tuesday evening.
Herald had reported about MMC’s financial crunch and also highlighted how it could realise crores of rupees in arrears from almost all the revenue sources and the non-receipt of the salary grants for the last 2 years.
In such a scenario, MMC’s move to go on top gear to purchase such a vehicle for its chairperson is not justified, more so, when the former vehicle hadn’t completed the requisite kilometer range that is required for an exchange and procurement of a new vehicle.
The MMC presently has 280 permanent employees and another 180 employees are daily wagers who are employed to collect door-to-door garbage and also cleaning the town. The MMC at the end of the month has to pat these employees with a hefty sum of Rs 98 lakh.
The Directorate of Municipal Administration had already denied the MMC to fund for the vehicle purchase and had suggested to buy the same from MMC coffers if needed. In addition to that, the Urban Development Minister has also advised the MMC to recover revenue for better functioning and infrastructure development.
The MMC will now be reliant on the recovery of these taxes as the future course of development largely depends on these resources given the fact that the DMA has always been on the back-foot to approve various works which are pending at their office.
