4 yrs after its formation JMC still dependent on govt grant
Even after four years after its formation, the Jammu Municipal Corporation has failed to generate any major income and is totally dependent on the government for grants to conduct its affairs.
The Municipal Corporation gets around 125 crores from the government, out of which 110 crore is being spent on other works including salary of the staff. And a meager 15 crore is being spent on development works, which is insufficient for 75 wards of the entire winter capital city.
Since its formation in the year 2018, the JMC has hardly taken any concrete steps to generate income. The income of the Municipal Corporation from other sources is about Rs. 28 crore. Development of the entire city comprising 75 wards with this meager amount is extremely difficult.
Every time the councilors demand the budget in the house, but they do not get the amount as per the requirement. Due to this, development works in the wards remain stalled. The city is being developed only through the Smart City Project.
The JMC generates 86 lakhs income from shops, 21 lakhs from rent of plots, 48 lakhs from building rent, 30 lakhs from community building, 12 lakhs from warehouses, 34 lakhs from open space, 18 lakhs from NOC fees, nine lakhs from parking, Street license generates an income of Rs.3 lakh from business tax of Rs.15 lakh. In this way JMC generates 28 crores in income.
At present many development works are being carried out in Jammu under the Smart City Project. The works under the Smart City Project included beautification of the Jammu city, LED lights, redevelopment of Tawi river front, decorating the bridges with decorative lights and creating parking facilities.
The situation was much worse in the first year after JMC was formed, as only five lakh amount each was spent on the development works in every ward in 2018-19. The amount was so negligible that councilors had a tough time facing the public. Many works were left incomplete due to paucity of funds. However the development has gathered pace since 2020, since the Smart City project commenced.
From 2018 to 2019, the Municipal Corporation was able to get only five lakh rupees done in each ward in a year. This made it very difficult for the councilors to get the work done. Many jobs stopped. The pace of development works has accelerated since the commencement of the Smart City Project in 2020.
The city had a crumbling drainage system which hardly saw any major change in the last 15 years. However under the Swachh Bharat Mission the works on construction and repair of drains, lanes and other ancillary works were undertaken. Still people of the city are forced to walk on the roads built twenty years ago. Apart from this, there has been no significant improvement in the condition of the drains.
As per a senior councilor, efforts are on to increase income of the JMC. A motion for this will be brought in the House soon. At present, the own budget of the Municipal Corporation has reached 28 crores.
