Funds for civic bodies released

In a bid to end deadlock over non- payment of salaries by BJP- ruled municipal corporations, the Aam Aadmi Party government on Wednesday decided to release their share of funds and instructed them to immediately disburse salaries to their staff. An official notification was issued by the government to expedite the payment of staff working at the lower rungs, who have been not receiving their salaries due to funds crisis plaguing the civic bodies.

The AAP government’s move comes few hours after a delegation of sanitation workers of all three municipal bodies met chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday. “We have directed our officials to release the funds share of the civic agencies. We are also issuing directions to officials of the civic bodies to release salaries of sanitation works once they get funds from the government,” Mr Sisodia said.

Ten days back, mayors of the three civic agencies had met Mr Kejriwal to seek financial help from his government.

The Aam Aadmi Party government said it had decided to disburse funds to the municipal corporations in view of long- pending demands of sanitation workers.

“On the first day of financial year, we did what we can do. The Centre should also release the share of civic bodies’ funds, pending for a long time,” Mr Sisodia said.

The government has also decided to launch a cashless medical scheme for sanitation workers. “Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal will soon write to all three commissioners of municipal corporations to start a cashless medical scheme so that they don’t have to face problem while getting medical treatment in hospitals,” he said.

Due to non- payment of salaries, sanitation workers had staged a series of protest across the national capital, which caused chaos on the streets. The delegation of three mayors, who recently met the CM, had claimed that the financial situation of three civic agencies has deteriorated after the trifurcation.

“We requested the Delhi government to give ` 302 crore so that we can pay salaries and meet other expenses. At present, 70 per cent of educational expenses are paid by the Delhi government, but to pay pension to retired teaching staff we requested them to increase this share to 90 per cent,” North Delhi Municipal Corporation mayor Yogender Chandolia had said after a meeting with Mr Kejriwal.

Meanwhile, hitting back over deputy CM Manish Sisodia’s statement that the East Corporation be handed over to Delhi government, BJP member in the corporation Subhash Arya on Wednesday said that the statement is totally undemocratic and the AAP’s attempt is politically motivated