In News:

• President Ram Nath Kovind has signed into law the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022.
  
  
• The Bill seeks to unify the three civic bodies in the national capital.
  
  

What’s in today’s article:

• About Delhi Municipal Corporation Bill (Major Provisions of the Bill, Need for Unification)
  
  
• News Summary
  
  

About Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022:

• The Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022 was introduced in Lok Sabha in March, 2022.
  
  
• The Bill seeks to amend the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 passed by Parliament.
  
  
• The Act was amended in 2011 by Delhi Legislative Assembly to trifurcate the erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi into:
  • North Delhi Municipal Corporation
    
    
  • South Delhi Municipal Corporation
    
    
  • East Delhi Municipal Corporation.
    
    
  
  
  
• The Bill seeks to unify the three corporations. The three MCDs together has 94.23% of the NCT area i.e. 1399.26 sq. km of the total area of 1484.97 sq. km. Together, these MCDs had a population density of 11,735 per sq. km, higher than Delhi’s population density of 11305 as per 2011 census.
  
  

Major Provisions of the Bill:

• The Bill replaces the three municipal corporations under the Act with one Corporation named the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
  
  
• Powers of the Delhi Government:
  • The Act, as amended in 2011, empowers the Delhi government to decide various matters under the Act.
    
    
  • These include:
    • total number of seats of councillors and number of seats reserved,
      
      
    • division of the area of corporations into zones and wards,
      
      
    • delimitation of wards,
      
      
    • matters such as salary and allowances, and leave of the Commissioner,
      
      
    • sanctioning of consolidation of loans by a corporation, and
      
      
    • sanctioning suits for compensation against the Commissioner.
      
      
    
    
    
  • The Bill instead empowers the Central government to decide these matters.
    
    
  
  
  
• Number of Councillors:
  • The Act provides that the number of seats in the three corporations taken together should not be more than 272.
    
    
  • The Bill states that the total number of seats in the new Corporation should not be more than 250.
    
    
  
  
  
• Removal of Director of Local Bodies:
  • The Act provides for a Director of Local Bodies to assist the Delhi government and discharge certain functions.
    
    
  • The Bill omits the provision for a Director of Local Bodies.
    
    
  
  
  
• Special officer to be appointed by the Central government:
  • The Bill provides that the Central government may appoint a Special Officer to exercise powers of the Corporation until the first meeting of the Corporation is held after the commencement of the Bill.
    
    
  
  
  
• E-governance system for citizens:
  • The Bill adds that obligatory functions of the new Corporation will include establishing an e-governance system for citizen services on anytime-anywhere basis for better, accountable, and transparent administration.
    
    
  
  
  

Need for Unification of Three Municipal Corporations of Delhi (MCDs):

• Face Multiple Problems:
  • Trifurcated MCDs faced multiple problems over the years, such as non-payment of salaries of safai karamcharis (sweepers), uneven distribution of property tax between three civic bodies, inefficient management and growing losses, etc.
    
    
  
  
  
• Multiple Decision-making Bodies:
  • Delhi despite being a single city, it is governed by five separate local bodies, including three MCDs, New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board.
    
    
  • Five different decision-making bodies results in confusion over implementation of several schemes including those of the Central government.
    
    
  • The Central government is of the view that after the reunification, it will be easier to provide funds to the MCD and also to implement flagship schemes for which funds are provided.
    
    
  
  
  
• Increasing Backlog:
  • Only the South MCD could sustain on its own financially while the other two MCDs North and East are making huge losses.
    
    
  • In the last ten years, after the trifurcation the backlog has increased manifold and now becomes almost unmanageable.
    
    
  
  
  
• Reducing Administrative Expenses:
  • There are three mayors, three commissioners, 12 additional commissioners. Even different MCDs have different committees.
    
    
  • This has increased the expenses manifold and is one of the major contributors to the financial crisis of the MCDs.
    
    
  • A unified MCD will help in reducing the administrative expenses and ultimately the financial crisis the MCDs are facing currently.
    
    
  
  
  

News Summary:

• 
  
  
• President Ram Nath Kovind has signed into law the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, which seeks to unify the three civic bodies in the national capital.
  
  
• After the presidential assent, the North, East and South Delhi municipal corporations will be subsumed into the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) once the terms of the three Houses end next month or the Ministry of Home Affairs issues the notification announcing the date of unification (whichever is earlier).
  
  
• The Bill mandated the Central government to appoint a special officer to exercise the power and discharge the functions of the corporation until its first meeting is held.