‘A wellplanned and wellmanaged sewage system is shaping up’

Recruitment of 945 sanitation workers and doorto-door waste collection will improve sanitation, and modern sewage system will free city areas from waterlogging. The mayor speaks about major projects on civic facilities.

BIKANER:

How has BMC changed the face of the city in the past four years?

Efforts were made to streamline the functioning of BMC and improve funds situation when we took charge in 2014. BMC allotted ~51 lakh for each ward to develop roads, street lights and drainage system. We spent an overall ~1 crore in every ward. BMC installed 33,000 LED street lights in all 60 wards. Recruitment of 945 sanitation workers at one go is a milestone. We have developed a modern sewerage system under Amrut (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) Yojana, spending Rs 139 crore. We are building a trenchless sewage system for 5 suburbs towns -Gangashahar, Bhinasar, Sujandesar, Sriramsar, and Kismidesar -- at a cost of about ~230 crore. We have replaced old machinery with the latest technology for cleaning. For the first time, BMC has come forward with the idea of making toilets in every girl school. We have also planned the first ‘gaushala’ to curb stray cattle menace. Bikaner is the first district in the country to be declared open defecation free and BMC played a significant role in this drive. Our doorto-door garbage collection drive is getting popular.

How much money has gone into them?

We spent about ~93.55 crore from our annual budget and more than ~400 crore has been spent from other resources in the last four years.

What are the projects that BMC showcases as the biggest achievements?

A planned and well-managed sewage system is shaping up. This will make the city clean and free from waterlogging. Gaushala will bring relief from cattle menace.