SRIKAKULAM: The State government has decided to upgrade Srikakulam Municipality to municipal corporation with the existing 36 divisions and planned to merge the surrounding villages later. With the Cabinet decision, the municipal officials have geared up and started the spadework.
In fact during the Congress regime, the then minister Dharmana Prasada Rao made relentless efforts to upgrade the municipality to get Central funds to develop the town and proposed to merge seven surrounding villages of Pedapadu, Killipalem, Chapuram, Kusalapuram, Khajipeta, Thotapalem and Patrunivalasa. The previous government had also issued the orders. Protesting the government’s decision, the panchayats approached the court. Later, the government cancelled the orders.
After State bifurcation, the TDP government has decided to develop all the district headquarter towns. According to the rules and regulations, to upgrade any civic body, the local bodies have to pass a resolution which should be sent to the government. However, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu proposed and passed the resolution to elevate Srikakulam municipality to corporation in the Cabinet meeting and asked the civic body to send a resolution as per the Cabinet decision.
Keeping in view the protest by the villages against the merger, the TDP government decided to upgrade the municipality with the existing 36 divisions and merge the seven panchayats after completion of tenure of the elected bodies. According to the guidelines, total population of the town should be three lakh for elevation to corporation. However, the government has amended the rules to upgrade Srikakulam into corporation. Total extent of the Srikakulam municipality is 18 sq.km and population is 1.26 lakh.
According to the government orders, the Srikakulam council has approved and passed a resolution for upgradation to corporation and sent it to the government. The council has also sent proposals of various developmental works worth `279 crore to the Central government seeking funds under the Amruth Scheme, said GSSNG Srinivas, Commissioner, Srikakulam municipality.
However, there is mixed response to the upgradation move. The people feel that they would be burdened with more taxes if Srikakulam becomes corporation.
“It is good, the town will be developed into a city. But people have to pay more taxes. Already the people in the town face trouble to pay the existing municipal taxes,” said N Mohan, a resident of Srikakulam.
