Mira-Bhayander Municipal Corporation(MBMC) corporators fly to Kerala on Rs.23Lakh study tour - wasting public money

The aam admi might be reeling under inflation but that hasn't stopped seventy corporators of the Mira-Bhayander Municipal Corporation (MBMC) from embarking on a Rs 23-lakh study tour of Kerala. The MBMC, which has 84 corporators, will bear the cost, which includes flight tickets and accommodation.

The tour comes at a time when several crucial projects, including construction of roads and laying of sewerage pipes, have been put on hold due to paucity of funds.

According to sources, the study tour plan was passed by the civic standing committee without any uproar. Leaders from the ruling Congress-NCP combine and Opposition parties-Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP), Shiv Sena, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) and Janata Dal-are part of the tour.

The netas, who will leave on Wednesday and return on January 24, will study the functioning of the municipal corporations in Kerala.

In the last few years, MBMC corporators have toured Nepal, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jammu & Kashmir, Shimla and Darjeeling, to name a few, to study the functioning of local bodies there. However, not a single report has been submitted to the municipal corporation till date, said a source.

When contacted, mayor Tulsidas Mhatre defended the tour saying it would help the leaders improve the functioning of MBMC.

"If past instances are anything to go by, then the leaders would be joined by family members," said a source, adding, "After spending half-a-day on visiting municipal corporations, the netas will, in all likelihood, spend the rest of the week sight-seeing."

The tour comes at a time when several crucial projects, including construction of roads and laying of sewerage pipes, have been put on hold due to paucity of funds.

Source: Netas will fly to Kerala on 23-L study tour - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Netas-will-fly-to-Kerala-on-23-L-study-tour/articleshow/7317075.cms#ixzz1BjkI8B19


This is just waste of public money, politician use public money for their useless study tour around India. Want to know what each one has learn from this tours and what has been implemented by the corporation . After so many years still the residence of this satellite twonship near Mumbai struggle basic amenities like water, road, drainage , cleanliness , medical facility , traffic .... The MBMC is one of the most corrupt Municipal corporation, most of the corporators are minting money when the common man is struggling for basic civic services. There should be judicial inquiry on corruption and work of MBMC for last 15 years.

Forget yourself for others, and others will never forget you.

Rural India still deprived

October 24 is observed as the World Development Information Day across the globe with the objective of drawing people's attention towards development problems.

But, most of the people, particularly in Varanasi are unaware about it and its importance. The main aim of World Development Information Day is to inform and motivate young people vital development issues that directly affect the life of people particularly in rural areas.

Agriculture, which is concentrated in rural India, is the mainstay of the Indian economy. According to government report, agriculture and allied sectors contribute nearly 22 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP of India), while about 65-70 per cent of the population is dependent on agriculture for their livelihood.

But, it is unfortunate to know that farmers have to struggle hard for basic amenities like health care, agricultural services, seed/fertiliser procurement facility and veterinary services. It is also a startling fact that the girls living in 1010 villages in the district have to travel over five kilometres to get secondary education because there is no such facility in these villages. Similarly the girl students of upper primary of 399 villages have to cover this distance to attend the schools.

According to the statistics of the district records, the district has 1289 villages in eight development blocks including Baragaon, Cholapur, Chiraigaon, Araziline, Kashi Vidyapeeth, Pindra, Harahua and Sevapuri. The policy draft of the ministry of rural development clearly mentions that the rural development implies both the economic betterment of people and greater social transformation. In order to provide the rural people with better prospects for economic development, increased participation of people in the rural development programmes, decentralisation of planning, better enforcement of land reforms and greater access to credit are envisaged. To achieve this target there are many schemes like Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana, Rural Housing, National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, and National Social Assistance Programme.

But, reality is that the rural folk are still a deprived section of the society. The records show that the agricultural mandis are over five km from 1180 villages while the native of 676 villages have to cover long distance to reach veterinary hospitals for the treatment of their livestock.

Similarly the natives of 578 villages have to cover a distance of over five km for health care facility in primary or community health centres. The cooperative agriculture and rural development banks are over 5km from 1239 villages while the farmers of 1204 villages have to travel such distance to reach selling/purchasing cooperative committees.

A number of villagers have also to travel far for amenities like cold storage, post office and public telephone in this age of information technology.


Source:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/varanasi/Rural-India-still-deprived/articleshow/5157868.cms



Forget yourself for others, and others will never forget you.

Indian property developers cater to the masses with low-cost housing

LAST month ten-year-old Azharuddin Ismail was woken in the middle of the night by the sound of bulldozers. As policemen beat him with a bamboo stick to shoo him and his family away, his home in Mumbai’s slums was swiftly demolished. Azhar, a celebrity since appearing in the film “Slumdog Millionaire”, has since been given a new home by the filmmakers. But other residents were not so fortunate.

India’s cities need at least 25m more homes, according to report from McKinsey, a consultancy, and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce. In Mumbai, the commercial capital, more than 8m people now live in shantytowns, often paying substantial rent for the privilege. But buying a home of their own is way out of reach for most of them: a 70-square-metre flat in the centre of the city costs $500,000 or so.

Matheran Realty is one of several firms that think they have a solution: ultra-low-cost housing. In Karjat, 90km east of Mumbai, Matheran Realty is in the process of building 15,000 flats with prices starting at just 210,000 rupees ($4,500) for 19-square-metre units. Tata, the firm that makes the $2,500 “Nano” car, is building 1,300 basic units at Boisar, about 100km north of the city, and may add more. Priced at 390,000-670,000 rupees each, they are already oversubscribed. Other firms are planning similar developments elsewhere in India.

The cost is being kept low chiefly because the flats are being built outside big cities, where land is much cheaper. Owners are expected to commute. The units are also very small and spartan. The simplest consist of a single room with a sink in the corner and a toilet behind a partition. They are in buildings of no more than three storeys, so there is no need for expensive structural works. Instead of bricks, lightweight moulded concrete blocks are used for the walls. The concrete is often made with foam, fly-ash or other waste materials to make it lighter as well as cheaper. There are no lifts and just one staircase per block. All this means that the homes can be built very quickly and with unskilled labour.

The developers say the potential for very cheap housing in India is huge. Many of those living in slums today are employed as drivers, factory workers or tailors, with incomes of around 90,000 rupees a year—easily enough to afford a flat which costs 200,000-400,000 rupees. According to Ashish Karamchandani of Monitor Group, another consulting firm, India has 23m urban families with incomes of 60,000-130,000 rupees a year. Including rural areas, Tata Housing sees an even larger market of 180m households earning between 90,000 and 200,000 rupees.

Until very recently one of the biggest hurdles was finance. Banks were unwilling to lend money to people without credit histories or proof of permanent residence. But two government-owned banks—the National Housing Bank and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development—have agreed to provide funds to finance companies so that they can offer mortgages to such buyers. To reduce risk, buyers must put down at least a quarter of the purchase price and employers must confirm their income. Borrowers are then charged little more interest than those with an established credit history.

Lenders and developers are convinced that they have struck gold. Who would have guessed that the combination of subprime loans and a building boom would have become attractive again so soon?



Source: http://www.economist.com/displayStory.cfm?story_id=13837400


Forget yourself for others, and others will never forget you.