Arbitrary transfers hindering completion of projects: Mangaluru Corporation Mayor

Mangaluru (Karnataka), Jul 25 (PTI) Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) councillors, cutting across party lines, have demanded a fair, transparent, and speedy implementation of switching to an LED street light system under the smart city project that is underway.

The council witnessed pandemonium on this issue twice during the first hour of the council meeting on Thursday.

Raising the issue, the opposition (Congress) member Vinayraj of Court Ward said: “The smart city project is going on for five years and by this time the LED street light component should have been completed by the MCC. Meanwhile, three companies that had bid for the project, including Crompton, have been kept on tenterhooks by the MCC. What is causing the delay and why? City Corporation has been kept in the dark about this." He alleged that the Corporation might be playing a trick on the people of Mangaluru by delaying the project and also keeping the information a secret.

Vinayraj said Mayor Sudheer Shetty Kannur is inefficient, as he was not able to control the officials.

Objecting to his comments, ruling BJP members stood up and shouted against Vinayraj and other councillors from the Congress party.

Meanwhile, Mayor Shetty alleged that the Congress-ruled state government was transferring officials from MCC.

“Thanks to these erratic transfers, the MCC is now down to 30 per cent of the workforce. We do not have dedicated staff for the management of the electrical system in the city,” he added.

According to a senior official of the MCC, the Corporation will save not less than 50 per cent power consumption, if the entire city's 65,000 street light points are energised with LED lamps.

He said 12,000 LED lights have already been purchased and another company called Fiza-Forum Enterprises has been mandated with the project and has placed orders for 50,000 units of LED lamp. If all modalities are over, all 65,000 street light points could be energised with LED lamps by November, he noted. PTI COR JR ROH