MCD announces populist budget with eye on polls

New Delhi, Jan 24 (UNI) Raising the pitch for the forthcoming polls, the MCD today passed a populist budget with many sops for Delhiites including increase in old age pension to Rs 500 per month, enhanced assistance to widows, cash incentive for the girl child, stipend for children of municipal employees and increase in allotment for hospitals.

Concluding the budget debate at a meeting of the MCD Standing Committee, its Chairman Jai Kishen Sharma also announced an increase in the Municipal Councillors Fund from Rs 85 lakh to Rs 1 crore to enable them to get more development works done in their wards.

Mr Sharma proposed an increase of Rs 268 lakh in the fund, thereby increasing the provision to Rs 13,936 lakhs instead of Rs 13,668 lakh as proposed by the Commissioner in his December 8 budget speech.

He also announced an increase in old age pension from the present Rs 400 to Rs 500 per month Besides, the number of elderly persons receiving old age pension in each MCD wards was increased to 1000. In this context, Mr Sharma said the increase in pension was to fulfill the gap left during the BJP rule.

''During the regime of BJP, 300 old persons were getting pension of Rs 100 in the year 2001, which was increased to Rs 200 during the last year of BJP's regime,''Mr Sharma said.

The budget also provides for increase in assistance being given to widows and poor women for the marriage of their daughters.

In this, as against a Rs 15,000 assistance for 15 widows in each ward, 20 women would get Rs 20,000.

Similarly, it was proposed that during the current financial year, provision be introduced for cash encouragement to girls to motivate them to get education. Rs 200 per girl child has been proposed, which will be separate from Rs 300 being given by Delhi Government.

In the medical sector, Mr Sharma proposed increase of Rs 85 lakh for Hindu Rao Hospital, Rs 35 lakh each for Rajan Babu TB Hospital, Kasturba Hospital and Seami Dayanand Hospital, Rs 40 lakh for Girdhar Lal Maternity Hospital and Rs 45 lakh for Maharishi Valmiki Infectious Diseases Hospital.

Installing MRI facility at Hindu Rao Hospital, was also proposed..

Mr Sharma proposed provision of Rs 30 crore for strengthening of roads around railway stations.

In another unique proposal, Mr Sharma called for an increase in the amount provided by the Commissioner to control the menace of monkeys, from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

''For cremation of dead bodies of dogs so as to stop pollution in river Yamuna, Rs 50 lakhs have been proposed while the provision of Rs 5 lakh by the Commissioner for hiring the trucks to nab stray cattle has been increased to Rs 1.2 crore,''Mr Sharma said.

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