BMC's highest Rs 59.95 K crore budget focuses on infra, health with 'green segment'

Quaid Najmi

Mumbai, Feb 2 (IANS) The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Friday presented a Rs 59,954.75 crore budget for 2024-2025, its highest ever, and 10.50 per cent higher than the previous fiscal's Rs 54,256.07 crore, with a "green component" and focus on infrastructure projects and health.  

In the budget, BMC Commissioner I. S. Chahal said there will be a capital expenditure of Rs 31,774.59 crore and a revenue expenditure of Rs 28,121.94 crore, or 53 per cent and 47 per cent.

The total Revenue Income is estimated at Rs 35,749.03 crore with a surplus of Rs 58.22 crore, and the ratio of Capital Expenditure to Revenue Expenditure is 53:47 per cent.

Chahal said that the prime focus is on health, infrastructure, cleanliness, and pollution control to convert Mumbai into a world-class city with top facilities.

The BMC has made a provision of Rs 31,774.59 to strengthen the civic facilities and make Mumbai clean, green and aspirational to live in for its inhabitants.

Implementing the Chief Minister’s Deep Cleaning Programme from December 2023, the BMC has formulated 61 SOPs, and the CM’s Zero Prescription Policy will be implemented in all civic hospitals with necessary medicines made available at a cost of Rs 500 crore.

The Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Divyang Financial Assistance Scheme will render financial aid to handicapped persons above 18 years with a provision of Rs 111.83 crore, while 1,600 Self Help Groups will be entitled to an assistance of Rs 100,000 each.

An amount of Rs 100 crore will be spent for the Mumbai Mahila Suraksha Abhiyan, while the Hinduhridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Urban Greening Project will see 500,000 bamboo plants taking root in the city, and organic farming in 100 BMC schools.

The BMC will establish a Virangula Kendra in seven zones of the city for senior citizens, said Chahal.

The total health budget is pegged at Rs 7,191.13 crore – or nearly 12 per cent of the total budget - with a series of initiatives for safeguarding public health.

These include: Mukhyamantri Arogya Aplya Dari to strengthen the Arogyam Kutumbam scheme, a Cancer Prevention Mode and Heart Rejuvenation project to be developed as pilot, and a metropolitan surveillance unit at Kasturba Hospital in collaboration with the Centre and State governments.

Major initiatives are proposed to develop major health-care facilities – redeveloping Bhagwati Hospital in Borivali (Rs 110 crore), redeveloping Sion Hospital (Phass I, Rs 85 crore), expanding M. T. Agarwal Hospital (Rs 64.54 crore), Nair Hospital Building (Rs 36.70 crore), a new building for Govandi Centenary Hospital (Rs 92.84 crore), expansion of Bandra’s K.B. Bhabha Hospital (Rs 50.45 crore), residential accommodation building for Acworth Leprosy Hospital (Rs 32 crore), constructing a Centenary Hospital in Kandivali west (Rs 69 crore), developing a hospital plot at Sangharsh Nagar I in Chandivali (Rs 55 crore), and revamping the Murli Deora Eye Hospital (Rs 27 crore).

The BMC plans to implement Access Control Project on Western Express Highway (WEH) and Eastern Express Highway (EEH), and has taken up a project costing about Rs 35,955.07 crore to construct the Mumbai Coastal Road-Versova Interchange to Dahisar Interchange and Goregaon Mulund Link Road and these are expected to be completed in 4 years.

In order to prevent Mumbai from getting submerged during monsoons, the BMC will spend Rs 1,930 crore for regular storm water drains (Rs 1,197.28 crore), pumping stations (Rs 77.72 crore), river rejuvenations (Rs 357 crore), and Mithi River project (Rs 298 crore).

On solid waste management, the BMC has planned a 7-step strategy under Mumbai Air Pollution Mitigation Plan with 700 km of roads and pavements being cleaned by 1,000 staffers and 200 water tankers (Rs 80 crore), curbing air pollution (Rs 25 crore), and Rs 230 crore for solid waste management mega-project.

For the water supply & sewage disposal sectors, the BMC will take up the Mumbai sewage disposal project (Rs 5,044.33 crore), a water supply project (Rs 2,400 crore), hydraulic engineering (Rs 1,020 crore), sewerage operation (Rs 557 crore), and sewerage project (Rs 422.28 crore), said Chahal.

Among the Special Projects, the BMC has listed: Coastal Road Project (Rs 2,900 crore), the Dahisar-Bhayander Link Road (Coastal Road’s last leg to the north, Rs 220 crore), Mumbai Coastal Road (North) comprising Versova-Dahisar 6 Packages (Rs.1,130 crore), the GMLR (Rs 1,870 crore) and a Sewage Treatment Project (Rs 4,090 crore).

The BMC estimates an income of Rs 13,331.63 crore from Grant-in-Aid (Octroi compensation), Property Tax (Rs 4,950 crore), Development Planning (Rs 5,800 crore), DP Implementation Sector budget (Rs 7,011.41 crore), financial aid to BEST (Rs 928.65 crore), provision of Rs 4,830 crore for various bridges, and Rs 252.80 crore for gardens and zoo.

The civic body will spend Rs 3,497.82 crore on strengthening primary education, Rs 3,200 crore for improving roads, SWM Staff Quarters at Rs 1,055 crore, refurbish the famed Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Market at Rs 55 crore, and redevelop an open plot in Deonar at Rs 180 crore.

(Quaid Najmi can be contacted at: [email protected])

--IANS

qn/vd