Two days after the Municipal Corporation terminated the extension given to M/s Lion Services Ltd, which was providing sanitation services in southern sectors here, many councillors decided to boycott the next MC House meeting. They have alleged that officers, including the Municipal Commissioner, are ignoring resolutions passed by the MC House.
The company has quoted the lowest rates for a fresh tender floated by the MC for sanitation work in the southern sectors. The decision to boycott the House meeting was taken at a meeting held in the Mayor’s office today. It was attended by 16 councillors of the Congress and the BJP.
Jasbir Singh Bunty of the Congress said the MC House had passed a resolution for allotting the tender to a company quoting the lowest rates for providing sanitation services in Sectors 31-50, 61 and 63. However, the Commissioner decided to terminate the extension given to the company and also wrote a dissent note against the resolution passed in the House.
Kanwarjeet Singh Rana of the BJP said the Commissioner had ignored the voices of councillors, who are elected representatives. In protest against the termination of extension given to the M/s Lion Services Ltd, they have decided not to attend the next meetings of the Finance and Contract Committee and MC House. The councillors would not attend any meeting till the Municipal Commissioner remains on his post, he said. Bunty said the MC had been giving the extension to the company on a regular basis due to the non-finalisation of a fresh tender. Its contract had expired last year. The MC can award the contract to any company but they are protesting the MC action of not respecting the resolution passed unanimously in House.
Meanwhile, Hardeep Singh, AAP councillor, said no councillor from his party attended the meeting and they were fully in support of the decision taken by the Commissioner.
The company had been providing sanitation services in the southern sectors since it was awarded the contract in 2017. The MC pays the company approximately Rs 50 crore annually. In the last House meeting, many councillors had favoured giving the contract to the same company, which quoted the lowest rates.
However, the MC officers were not in favour of allotting the tender to the company as it had failed to give a satisfactory reply to a questionnaire sent to it. The officers claimed that the bid quoted by the company was still on the higher side.
Meanwhile, Mayor Saurabh Joshi said the councillors met in the morning and took up the matter with him. He had apprised the authorities concerned of the councillors’ concerns. He was in discussion with all of them to resolve the issue.
When contacted, MC Commissioner Amit Kumar said he would continue to work in the interest of the civic body.
