Raviprasad Kamila/The Hindu

• Six posts, including that of a commissioner, are vacant
• Council to take up the issue with the Minister soon
• ‘They take this as excuse for delays in executing projects’

Mangalore, Jul 8: The Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) is facing dearth of senior staff with six top posts, including that of a commissioner, remaining vacant.

Other posts vacant are: assistant commissioner, revenue officer, public relations officer, special land acquisition officer and Council secretary. Besides, some middle-level posts in this civic body have also been vacant for quite some time now. This has come in the smooth functioning of the corporation, according to sources.

“The posts of public relations officer, Council secretary and assistant commissioner are vacant for over two years,” the corporation sources said.

P.K. Subbaiah, who took charge as the new commissioner of the corporation in April this year, was transferred a month ago. At present, J.R. Lobo, deputy director (Projects) of Karnataka Urban Development and Coastal Environment Management Project (KUDCEP), Karnataka Urban Infrastructure and Finance Development Corporation (KUIDFC), is holding the additional charge of the corporation’s commissioner.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the corporation’s Council has decided to take up this issue with S. Suresh Kumar, Minister for Municipalities and Urban Local Bodies, during his visit to the city scheduled for July 14.

“The party, through Mayor Ganesh Hosabettu and Minister in-charge Krishna Palemar, has already brought this to the notice of Mr. Kumar. We will follow up this matter with Mr. Kumar on Monday next,” M. Shankar Bhat, Chief Whip in the corporation Council and a three-time councillor, told The Hindu. “The burden on other officials has increased,” he added.

Allegation

G. Hanumantha Kamath, president, Nagarika Hitarakshana Samithi, alleged that dearth of officials had become a blessing-in-disguise for a few to delay the development activities. “They use this as a lame excuse for the delay being caused in execution of various projects,” he said without elaborating it.

Mr. Kamath said that the duration of contract for handling solid waste of the city, awarded to different contractors, would expire by middle of next month. The corporation was still thinking whether to award the contract for the next term to a single contractor or follow the existing the system. He attributed the delay in taking a decision to absence of regular commissioner in the corporation since one month.

He said that as per the information obtained from the corporation under the Right to Information Act, nine retired employees had been recruited for the corporation’s audit section. Of them, four were appointed with consent from the corporation’s Council and the rest with the consent from the Government.

According to S. Ajith Kumar Hegde, joint commissioner in the corporation, any official holding additional charge as the Commissioner of the corporation, is authorised to take policy decisions.