GHAZIABAD: The partial takeover of Indirapuram by the Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation (GMC) is expected to take place by next month, officials have said.
Both the GMC and the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) are these days busy preparing the separate estimates of the three services — horticulture, streetlights and sanitation — that will be handed over to the former by the latter, TOI has learnt.
The GMC Board gave its nod to the partial takeover of the township last month, ending the six-year-long impasse between the two government agencies over the contentious issue.
“An estimate is being worked out by the GMC on the amount of money that will be required at the time of takeover of the three services approved by the Board. I believe the GDA is preparing its own estimate, which will be done in another 15 days,” said Mahendra Singh Tanwar, municipal commissioner.
“After tallying the estimate, an independent agency will carry out an audit on the amount of money that the GDA will have to pay to the GMC. By next month, we hope that the handover of the three services in Indirapuram will take place,” he added.
A GDA official also confirmed that the handover process at their end “has been initiated”. “The process has started and by next month, the three services saving water and sewer works will be handed over to the GMC.”
The handover issue of Indirapuram led to bad blood between the GMC and GDA for years. GMC set a prerequisite for the handover of the township and had demanded Rs 365 crore from the GDA to complete pending work that the latter was reluctant to give.
Before 2016, Indirapuram was under the jurisdiction of the Makanpur ward. But after delimitation, it was divided into seven wards. But since the handover to the corporation has not taken place over infrastructure issues, no development funds have been released by the GMC to date.
