The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has promised scientific levy of property tax, efficient online services, including for building permissions, segregation and disposal of solid waste in municipal areas, where its candidates are elected in the Urban Local Body (ULB) polls.
Releasing the ‘State wide’ party manifesto here on Sunday, senior leader and MLC N. Ramchander Rao and others stated that ‘local manifestos’ adhering to the prevailing civic conditions in the respective municipal regions have been released and this one gives a more complete picture on what it stands for in development of the ULBs.
Stating that the BJP stands for providing a clean, transparent and accountable administration to the local bodies, Mr. Rao charged the TRS government with taking away the funds of the municipalities and diverting them to fund its other flagship programmes, depriving them of the money required to improve the civic infrastructure.
“Property tax is being arbitrarily charged even in the twin cities where citizens living in the suburbs are forced to pay much more than what is being paid in the core areas of Jubilee Hills and others. We would like to correct this anomaly,” he said.
Mr. Rao, also the city president of the party, accused the ruling partymen of colluding with land grabbers, encroaching into water bodies and public spaces like parks. Therefore, protection and improvement of parks, playgrounds and libraries are among the priorities for the BJP in the urban areas.
Provision of potable drinking water, preventive health, cleanliness and sanitation, integrated long term development plan with focus on improving upon the of backward areas, providing skill development and training centres to give a fillip to the small and medium scale enterprises for employment to the youth are among the assurances made in the manifesto.
The party has also promised computerisation of municipal records, toll free number for grievance redressal, especially those of land disputes, developing burial grounds, providing freezer vans, timely deliverance of certificates through the citizen service centres, pensions to the needy and so on.
“We are also going to have relaxation centres for the elderly. Wherever we win, we are 100% going to adhere to our manifesto and provide a modern municipal administration,” added Mr. Rao.
