NDTV Panel Discussion on MCD workers Strike in Delhi : B S Vohra

with thanks : NDTV

Delimitation of MCD Wards

I came to know through sh Kakaria letter that municipal Corporation Wards are being Delimitated now. Sir I wants to draw the attention of authorities towards unsensible delimitation done previously. There are Five Appartments in East Arjun Nagar Delhi-110032 1Anupam Appartment,2 Jeevan Bima apartment,3 Navrachna Appartment 4 Chiutrakoot Appartment 5 Hans Appartment During the last Municipal Election Navrachna and Jeevan Bima were put into Ward No 225 and other three in Ward No 226. We the residents of Navrachna Appartment were sandwiched between the other Appartment. Development work suffered even for fogging and all petty works we were forced the Complaint at Public Grievance Monotoring system. Now appeal to concerned authority that all the Five Appartments may be put either in Ward No 225 or in 226 do not sandwich  us so that development work could be done smoothly. 

with regards 

Chander Mohan 

In war of funds, Delhiites will be first to suffer

Dear Mr. Vohra/Editor/HT,

It is not clear from the press reports and the ground situation who is at fault and who is to be blamed! While the Delhi Govt. claims that there is no dues to the MCD, but on the contrary the latter says that money due to them is not being released. In this fight and claim and counter claim, while the media gets a lot of 'masala' to fill their pages and telecast too, the factual position is not known to aam aadmi and they only suffer in this process caring little for their welfare and health! Why the Govt. does not bring out an 'white paper' on the subject and release it to the media so that people at large will know who is at fault and what remedial action could be taken. The people are in a quandary and they don't know what to do in the circumstances. 

It is a pity that even volunteers who wish to do the cleaning on their own volition to keep their premises clean and tidy are not permitted to do this voluntary job and are even prevented to do the job! On the other hand the karmacharies who are on strike spread the garbage deliberately all over the streets and do not realise their responsibilities! What an image we are building up in the process to the world to see in this unfortunate and uncalled for and unwarranted tangle! 

Even the Court's intervention and direction in this specific matter has no positive result or impact! Then who else will bell the cat!! Should we seek the assistance of any foreign agency to intervene in this pitiable matter and settle the issue or call for donations from the public to arrange payment of salaries to the poor staff who are also suffering in this tug-of-war game!!!

In the circumstances should the Central Govt. should be gracious enough to give a loan to the MCD direct, albeit unprecedented, as an one time exercise to overcome the present impasse or the MCD seek a loan from the IMF or such other international agencies to give them an interest free grant or loan to solve this perennial issue coming to the fore from time to time tarnishing the image of the City and the country's capital!! 

Can anybody make an useful and practical solution to the above to ponder over the matter publicly? Why not the our representatives in the MCDs e.g. Councillors, Mayors and officials loan a certain amount voluntarily and help them which will be greatly acknowledged and could fetch votes in the coming election too by giving adequate publicity for the 'sincere and genuine sacrifice' they have made to resolve the issue in the overall interest of the people, whom they represent!!!

TK Balu/Anand Vihar

MCD – MESS COMPOUNDED over DECADES - What was NEEDED ....... What was DONE

MCD – MESS COMPOUNDED over DECADES

What was NEEDED ....... What was DONE

What was NEEDED ..... REDRAFT THE DELIVERY MECHANISM

What was DONE ...... REORGANISE THE POWER STRUCTURE

Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) ..... HAS IT LIVED UP TO THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH IT WAS FORMED ??????

Anyone who has dealt with MCD knows that it takes three departments to change a Light Bulb in MCD. Multiplicity of Authority has been the Bane of MCD and has been the real cause for the mess we find ourselves in.

MCD has seen many changes in the past decade, ALL OF THEM MISPLACED, instead of CHANGING PROCEDURES TO GET THE JOB DONE, the solutions have compounded the Problem ...... (A) Development Funds (LAD) placed in the hands of Politicians (B) Doubling the number of Councillors from 136 to 272 to accommodate more Politicians (C) Tripling the number of Mayors and Commissioners to give more positions of power to Netas and Babus by creating three Municipalities.

The moot question is, did any of the modifications bring about any change in the city’s Civic Infrastructure? Each passing year things have gone from bad to worse, LAD Funds are used more to please Vote Banks, with little emphasis on routine Maintenance or Planned Civic Development. No Social Audit has ever been conducted to determine whether doubling the number of Councillors have brought any Efficiency or Qualitative Improvement in the functioning of MCD. To make matters worse MCD was trifurcated, which proved to be the last straw in breaking the proverbial Camel’s Back ..... Today, North and East Corporations are Bankrupt and South is barely breaking even.

One wonders where all our Tax Money goes, GK-I Roads have not been recarpeted for Nine Years, although they ought to be re-laid every Five Years, forget that, Potholes on roads are rarely repaired. Most Parks in GK-I are maintained by the respective BLock RWAs; Backlanes are in a pathetic state; storm water drains are nonexistent; footpaths and kerbstones are dishevelled; unauthorised construction is rampant; no checks on misuse of residential property for commercial purposes; just 35% properties are in Tax Net; illegal hoardings and posters dot the cityscape; footpaths are encroached upon; malba is lying dumped all around; garbage collection and dhalaos have not kept pace; Sanitation Staff is not seen beyond 10 am; horticulture waste disposal has not been mechanised; no policy for removal of abandoned vehicles; parking policy is designed more to benefit contractors; house number signage is nonexistent; PM’s Swachh Bharat Campaign reduced to a Photo-opp  .... MCD has failed on all counts.

MCD is a Bottomless pit, money pumped in goes in salaries but no one knows how many employees there are? There have been no new recruitments in MCD for a decade and many have retired, leading to fewer employees; the ghost employees have been eradicated by way of biometric attendance; Property Tax has been raised over the years; computerisation of some services has reduced operating cost ...... yet there is no money to pay salaries.

More money has been spent in redecorating MCD offices/buildings and installing fancy Furniture, LCD TV’s, AC’s, etc than on the upkeep of the city. No new policies have been introduced to increase income nor has there been any effort in collecting data of properties out of the Tax Net.

Delhi will benefit more if MCD is disbanded as it has only benefited Political Parties to take care of carders and the corrupt employees to amass wealth beyond their means. IS IT NOT TIME TO REDRAFT THE DELIVERY MECHANISM ...... INSTEAD OF CONSTANTLY REORGANISING THE POWER STRUCTURE ?????

Rajiv Kakria

In war of funds, Delhiites will be first to suffer

APPREHENSION City residents fear streets littered with garbage will return to haunt them if the strike continues

NEW DELHI: Over a lakh municipal workers went on an indefinite strike on Wednesday, threatening a re-run of the last year’s mess when sanitation workers struck work — streets littered with garbage, choked sewers and poorly-maintained roads.

This time, however, it won’t just be sanitation. The civic bodies run a major part of the capital, providing key services such as sanitation, health, education, administrative services, licences, etc.

Sanitation staff, engineers, doctors, teachers and administrative staff have all pledged to make the strike successful. Most of the corporation offices in north and east Delhi may not see any work at all till the strike is over.

Residents of the city, however, hope the Delhi government resolve the matter before it becomes difficult again to walk on the streets.

“If money is due to the MCD and it’s not being cleared by the government, then definitely the AAP regime is responsible. We have already faced the garbage menace twice last year and we don’t want that situation again. The government must understand the problem of the people and the issue must be resolved without any more inconvenience to the aam aadmi,” BS Vohra, president of East Delhi RWAs Joint Front (Federation), said.

Rajendra Gupta, member of Model Town F-Block RWA, recounted the misery people faced in his area in October last year.

“Last time too, due to nonpayment of salaries to sanitation staff, garbage was dumped at every nook and corner of our neighbourhood, including the main road leading to Azadpur Mandi. That was removed after 10 days. It led to unhygienic conditions and made it difficult for us to even cross the lanes. We tried getting it removed on our own but were stopped from doing that. We ultimately had no other choice but to wait for things to calm down,” Gupta said.

“In the slugfest between the Delhi government and corporations, the common man is suffering,” he added.

Saurabh Gandhi, general secretary, United Residents of Delhi and resident welfare association of Rana Pratap Bagh, felt it was inevitable as the civic bodies’ workers had not been paid their salary for months.

“There is no denying the fact that staff should be paid salary on time because they, too, like all of us, require money for daily expenses. It is unfortunate that they have not been paid money for many months,” he said.

The civic body workers, however, are firm on pursuing their agitation path.

A teacher working with a school falling under the north civic body said, “Half of our school teachers are participating in strike every day. Children are being asked to go back home.”

with thanks : Hindustan Times

Odd Even in Delhi : B S Vohra : India Today, IBN7, Delhi Aajtak, Total TV

Govt had announced the ODD EVEN system in Delhi, to check the Traffic Jam & Pollution problems of Delhi. We got the opportunity to speak and ask at various platforms that included: INDIA TODAY TV Channel with Justice Katju,  IBN7 with Transport Minister Gopal Rai as well on Delhi Aaktak & a panel discussion on Total TV. Thanks. B S Vohra

India Today TV Channel : with Former Justice Mr Katju : 




 IBN7 : with Transport Minister : Mr Gopal Rai : 




Delhi Aajtak : Dam GhutTa Hai :



Total TV : Panel Discussion :




with thanks :     India Today TV,  AAJTAK,  IBN7,  Delhi Aajtak,  Total TV

The Leela Ambience Convention Hotel, CBD Ground, Karkardooma, Delhi

The Leela Ambience Convention Hotel, Delhi

1 CBD, Maharaja Surajmal Road, Near Yamuna Sports Complex, Delhi -110032, India

ODD EVEN : Honeymoon period is Over : Traffic Jam again, on the roads !

Delhi Headed for a MAJORITARIAN DELIMITATION - Should that be a Cause for Concern ?????

Dear Friends,

Delimitation of Municipal Wards based on Population Density may at first glance seem logical and equitable but it may have its own pitfalls.

Delhi State Election Commission (SEC) is redrafting Municipal Wards, I do not know how many citizens are aware of it and has the SEC tried to involve various stakeholders ?????

I know for a fact that Politicians are taking keen interest in how the Wards are being Re-organised, after all some big names were Orphaned when the exercise was last undertaken for MLA constituencies. Politicians will look at their limited interests based on Vote Banks and Winnability.

I am no expert but wish to FLAG A FEW CONCERNS, based on my reading of Population Density Based Delimitation ....... EXAMPLES - North Eastern States ...... with so few MPs NE has remained deprived; Uttar Pradesh ..... Uttrakhand had to be carved out as the Population based Delimitation kept the low density Hill people deprived; likewise Bihar and Madhey Pradesh etc.

Even in J&K the Valley gets undue advantage, Ladhak that has a huge Geographical Spread, being the poor cousin with little or no say in the Power Calculus or Funds.

Delhi SEC is Reorganising Municipal Wards into 45,000 to 50,000 Voters per ward. This puts Plotted Colonies with a larger Geographical Spread at a huge disadvantage vis Unauthorised Colonies that have high Population Density.

For Example, GK Constituency may end up with Three Wards against the present Four, whereas Sangam Vihar may end up with Seven Wards instead of the present Four.

As it is, most Posh Colonies have densely populated Villages and Slums attached to them. Out-numbered slowly neglect is turning Posh areas into slums with no significant improvement noticed in the slums. The needs of the various types of colonies are vastly different ....... Delimitation should keep keep Category of Colonies in mind while carving out Wards ..... and not just consider Population as the only parameter.

Populism has taken center-stage in the drafting of Delhi's Master Plan, with Majoritarian Delimitation, VOICE OF DDA & PLOTTED COLONIES will further be curtailed ...... for example with a vast majority in the house, MCD decides to give Vending Rights on all Public Land ????? 

A balanced Equated Formula needs to be worked out taking into consideration the Geographical Spread and Density so that there is equitable distribution of resources and Majoritarianism does not get undue advantage.

I have posted this at the risk of being labeled elitist ..... but keeping quiet has made SUCKERS OF TAX-PAYERS.

Warm Regards,

Rajiv Kakria

The ODD Uber Surge Pricing ..... Auto Wala Kare toh Character Dheela ?????

CURB SURGE FLEECING ....... INTRODUCE UNIFORM PRICING

​

Dear Friends,

Today is the last day of the ODD / EVEN Formula ....... Congratulations Delhites for making it a Success.

I have ODD Numbered Cars so on EVEN days I tried different options ....... Car Pooling, Car Swapping, Auto and Finally Uber ......

We talk a lot about the FLEECING AUTOS asking for double the Fare, but my experience with UBER WAS SHOCKING ....... I downloaded the App .......... to my surprise the rates kept changing through the day.

The above Photographs are SCREEN SHOTS from my phone at my residence taken at 12:07 pm the Minimum Price @ 1.7X is Rs. 212.50 and later at 6:49 pm @ 3.9X was Rs. 487.50.

UBER has developed this novel idea of SURGE PRICING and fares keep changing based on Supply and demand. Through the day the rates changed from Minimum 1.3X to 2.8X to 3.9X on all kinds of rides UberGo, UberX and UberXL.

Uber Kare toh ooh la la ....... Auto Wala Kare toh Character Dheela ?????

Mr. Kejriwal, in your review please ensure, TO MAKE ODD / EVEN FORMULA A SUCCESS ...... CURB SURGE FLEECING,  Introduce Uniform Pricing.

Warm Regards,

Rajiv Kakria

Powering banks to collect electricity bills in Delhi - Mohalla Samities

Dear Mr. Vohra ji,

I must admit and compliment you on disseminating information from all fronts which is very useful and update what all happening around in East Delhi and thereby enlighten as well on all such vital matters. But while doing so, you should also invite comments of the RWAs etc. on all such vital issues so that you could present a better picture to the agencies concerned and get to know the feelings of the people to share with them! Your from address in all mails say: 'noreply'! People who are not very much conversant with 'facebook', 'twitter; etc., particularly senior citizens like me, unlike you as you are always energetic, enthusiastic and ever-ready to fight against 'unjust' being done, may continue to be permitted to express and share their views through e-mail, as hithertofore!

As regards 'powering banks to collect electricity bills in Delhi, I would like to inform you that our Society in Anand Vihar has made arrangements in its office by keeping 'Drop Boxes' for all such payments, be electricity, water, MTNL bills and IGL where the residents in Anand Vihar, sometimes the residents of neighbouring colonies as well take advantage of this facility to put their bills in the respective 'drop boxes' which are cleared periodically by the messengers nominated for the purpose by the said agencies which we find very useful, apart from 'payments on line' to them. Hence the RWAs in different colonies could also similarly help the people in their respective colonies by typing up for such arrangements with the agencies concerned, which will help them a lot!! Besides such agencies have also a system of depositing a fixed amount (based on the average of their bills) with them for deducting the amount of the bills regularly. You will be heartening to know that such agencies do also payment of interest on the remaining balance amount with them from time to time. 

To be in tune with the time - promoting 'digital India' etc. - we must also encourage the residents to resort to such aforesaid facilities for payment of bills. In fact with the passage of time cash payment of various bills at the counters will drastically reduce with the availability of credit and debit cards etc. issued by the banks etc. and carrying of cash with the people for such payments will gradually vane!!

Incidentally, may I remind you that we had been requesting your forum to collate the grievances of residents through their respective RWAs, which are 'common' in nature and present them to the authorities concerned and follow them up too till they are resolved to the satisfaction of the RWAs. We also understand that the Govt. of Delhi is also undertaking an exercise (fruitful and admirable and novel) to contact the local people concerned in 'Mohallas' to frame its forthcoming budget by making provisions for the same. The Govt. is engaging their AAP volunteers in various Mohallas for the purpose and making a financial provision too for undertaking some small works in the colonies to meet their long standing grievances! Can you throw some light on such vital issues and educate the RWAs in this respect to be prepared for the same, which will be found very useful!

Suffice to say thank you once again and pray to the Almighty to give all the strength and sinews to continue to do your present yeoman service to the community at large and bless you with all success in your earnest endeavours of which all of us can be proud of!!!

With deep regards,

TK Balu/Anand Vihar