Mangalore: Mayor Gulzar Banu Presents Budget Amidst Commotion

Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (PS)

Mangalore, Mar 30: The annual budget of Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) for the year 2012-13 was presented by mayor Gulzar Banu amid much chaos on Friday March 30. However, by presenting the budget, she put an end to all speculations that had brimmed ever since her controversial election as the mayor.

The budget was prepared by the BJP, which is the majority party in the MCC. However, due to the surprise election of Gulzar Banu of Congress after BJP candidate was rejected, the onus of the budget fell on her.

Before the presentation of the budget, Gulzar Banu asked Shantha, the president-in-waiting of finance commission to present the budget.

At that moment former mayor Shankar Bhat of BJP stood up and opposed her call, stating that she is a 'so-called' mayor who was 'not elected'. "Gulzar Banu does not have the right to assign the task of presenting the budget to Shantha," he said, adding that the BJP had challenged the Banu's election legally and that the case is still in court.

BJP corporators, provoked by this outrage, then decided to boycott the budget session.
 
Nevertheless, as the house still had one-third of its members, with 20 from Congress, two Independents and one CPI (M) member, the session went on and Banu presented the budget.

The budget for Mangalore amounts to a total expenditure of Rs 228.27 crore and an income of 228.39 crore, with a surplus of 12.07 lacs.

Major highlights of the budget
 
Income of Rs 35 crore from water bill, Rs 28.86 crore from self-assessed income tax, Rs 1.25 crore from commercial and trading licenses, Rs 7.20 crore from development fees, Rs 3.16 crore from municipal markets, in all totalling an income of Rs 228.39 crore, including government grants and other sources.
 
Expenditure stood at Rs 175 lac for drainage renovation work, Rs 1300 lac for development works, Rs 295.75 lac for welfare fund, Rs 93.60 lac for poverty eradication, 39 lac for welfare of the physically challenged, Rs 5 crore for land acquisition, Rs 3 crore for Thumbay vented dam, in all totally an expenditure of Rs 228.27 crore. Thus the budget saw a revenue surplus of Rs 12.07 lac.
 
Share of income: 31.78% from government grants, 18.39% from wage and electricity grants, 17.71% from water bill and others, 13.46% from wealth tax, 6.57% from solid waste disposal, 7.31% from development fees, 4.78% from other sources.
 
Share of expenditure: 31.79 % for human resources, 18.40% for wages and electricity, 8.76% for finance and interest, 18.90% for maintenance, 4.68 % for other expenditures, 2.19% for land acquisition, 13.40% for development projects, 1.88 % for welfare expenditure.