Amidst complaints of disruption to routine public work in Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), which has been hit by an alleged scam in the allotment of sites under the 50:50 ratio scheme, former Minister and MLA Tanveer Sait has appealed to the Mysuru District administration to take necessary steps for the resumption of public work in MUDA.
Speaking to reporters in Mysuru, Mr. Sait said the law was clear that the Deputy Commissioner would assume charge as the Chairman of MUDA in the absence of a nominated incumbent. Hence, Deputy Commissioner of Mysuru Lakshmikant Reddy should assume charge as the Chairman of MUDA in the wake of Mr. Marigowda’s resignation from the post, he said.
Let the inquiries by Lokayukta and Directorate of Enforcement (ED) into the alleged scam in MUDA continue, but the district administration should clear the path for resumption of public work, he said.
With regard to the State government’s proposal to dissolve the MUDA Board, Mr. Sait said a piece of legislation had been enacted in 2017 to nominate members to MUDA on the lines of Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA). But, the Act has not been enforced so far, he said.
Regretting the sorry state of affairs in MUDA, Mr. Sait said such a situation had arisen in MUDA due to its failure to hold regular monthly meetings since the last five years.
He pointed out that a total of 1.25 lakh applications for sites were pending before the MUDA. With 98 per cent of MUDA’s geographic purview already covered, it is not possible to meet the demand for sites by such a large number of people, he said while making out a case for expansion of MUDA’s jurisdiction.
If the applications by the public pending before the MUDA continue to be ignored, unauthorised layouts will crop up in the city, he warned.
Recovered sites
Mr. Sait said the MUDA should recover all the sites allotted under the contentious 50:50 ratio scheme during the tenure of both the former Commissioners – Dinesh Kumar and D.B. Natesh.
The MUDA Board meeting during which a decision was taken to allot 14 sites Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife Parvathi, the allotment of a total of 175 sites was approved. “Now, only 14 sites allotted to the Chief Minister’s wife had been returned. The remaining sites should also be returned,” he said.
However, Mr. Sait said it was the responsibility of elected representatives to forward applications received by them from the general public to the officials concerned. “But, the law is clear that the Commissioner is responsible for any illegal action. He can place such proposals before the Board and seek their modification or write to the government stating that such decisions can’t be implemented,” he said.
Published – October 20, 2024 07:14 pm IST
