Govt hikes Rajkot corporators’ allowances by 150 percent

REJECTING their demand of 300 per cent hike in their honoraria and allowances, the state urban development department has approved around 150 percent increase in payouts to corporators of Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) and brought them at par with their counterparts in Ahmedabad. The government also allowed other six municipal corporations to hike allowances of their elected representatives to the upper limit prevalent in Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC).

The general board of RMC had adopted a resolution in October last year seeking to hike monthly honorarium to a coprorator from the existing Rs 2,000 to Rs 7,000. Similarly, the resolution also sought to double meeting allowance of a corporator from Rs 200 to Rs 400 per meeting with an upper limit of Rs 2000 per month. The corporators also proposed to double their telephone allowance from Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 per month and pushing stationery allowance from Rs 300 to Rs 500 per month.

However, through a letter to municipal commissioners of Rajkot, the state urban development department informed the civic body that the government, after due consideration, had decided to clear around 150 per cent hike in payouts to corporators. The department allowed the civic body to increase monthly honorarium of corporators to Rs 3,000, meeting allowance to Rs 250, telephone allowance to Rs 750 and stationery allowance to Rs 500.

The hiked honorarium and allowances are at par with those for corporators of AMC.

“In response to the proposal sent by the municipal commissioner of Rajkot, the state government, after due consideration, has decided to that councillors of other municipal corporations should also get allowances at par with councillors of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation. In this view, the state government hereby allows municipal corporations of Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Junagadh and Gandhinagar to form rules for payment to elected representatives within the specified limits,” the letter from the urban development department sent to municipal commissioners of the eight cities on March 27, said.

Chairman of standing committee of RMC, Nitin Bhardwaj said corporators will have to abide by the decision of the state government. “Honorarium and allowances of corporators had not been hiked since 2006 and therefore we had sought an increase. It is prerogative of the state government as to how much increase should corporators get. We are satisfied with whatever has been decided by the government,” Bhardwaj said on Wednesday.

Source:: Indian Express