Sign In
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has been flooded with complaints over the proposed expansion of the civic body from 650 sq km to over 2,000 sq km, which means redrawing ward boundaries.
The expanded GHMC will cover Telangana Core urban region and will have 300 wards after the recent merger of 27 municipalities, municipal corporations in and around Outer Ring Road (ORR).
Over 1,000 petitions submitted:
At least 1,000 petitions have been submitted in just four days, raising objections to new ward boundaries, ward names and the areas into which they have been merged. Political parties have expressed fear that the new ward boundaries could erode their vote bank and the developmental work carried out in the existing wards could be included in newly created wards.
Residents said that the new boundaries don’t do not reflect natural community divisions or existing administrative zones.
‘Revisit the delimitations exercise’: RWAs to GHMC
Many colonies that are socially, physically a part of a single neighbourhood have been split across many wards. Concerns of civic coordination, service delivery and representation have come to the fore, residents said.
“This will lead to confusion during municipal elections and will affect the functioning of ward-level committees. GHMC should rectify this and ensure each ward has identifiable boundaries and administrative considerations,” United Federation of Resident Welfare Associations general secretary BT Srinivasan said.
The resident welfare associations have also asked the GHMC to revisit this delimitation and to review maps in consultation with local RWAs. In a petition submitted to the GHMC, the UFERWAS listed proposed changes to make sure there is transparency in the exercise. The petition said that enough time should be given to citizens for objections, suggestions before the final decision.
In response, GHMC has noted the concerns and said that the objections are being examined. A senior GJMC official told the media that suggestions and objections will be accepted till Thursday and will be scrutinized in detail before a final call is taken.
The civic body has made boundary descriptions of all 300 wards available for public scrutiny. The ward boundary limits have been published in detail and these details can be accessed at their nearest circle offices for residents who want to submit objections or suggestions.
Congress MLAs, corporators meet GHMC mayor:
Meanwhile, Congress MLAs, corporators, and ex-officio members from the city met with GHMC Mayor Gadwal Vijayalakshmi on Monday, December 15. The corporators along with MLAs Danam Nagender, Arikepudi Gandhi, Prakash, and MLC Balmuri Venkat, met the Mayor and discussed the redrawing of GHMC division boundaries. Speaking to the media, they said they had asked the Mayor to explain the basis on which the division boundaries were redrawn.
