Look now, BMC8217;s changing privately8217;

MUMBAI, August 5: He is one of Mumbai's most visible bureaucrats today. Still, 36 years in the Indian Administrative Service has not take...

MUMBAI, August 5: He is one of Mumbai8217;s most visible bureaucrats today. Still, 36 years in the Indian Administrative Service has not taken his corporate yearnings out of him. Municipal Commissioner K Nalinakshan, installed at the helm of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation BMC in May, says he wants to hire private consultants, lawyers and even a systems manager to awaken the sloth in the country8217;s premier civic body.

Simply put: He does not want the BMC, which celebrated its centenary a quarter century ago, to be a typical government office any more. Says he: 8220;The municipal staff are not up to the mark. That is because they are not motivated. I have to hire outside agencies because our staff have not been able to get things going.8221;

Mumbaikars are not aware of the 8220;positive side8221; of the BMC, he remarks, no thanks to the municipal staff. The only solution to both inverting this perception as well as getting the job done is to hire private agencies to play class monitor.

Egged on by thecommissioner, the BMC has already decided to hire a private public relations firm to give the civic body a new facade one that is citizen-friendly and savvy. Five firms have been shortlisted and a decision is awaited. 8220;What the BMC does is not highlighted. What people get to know is what we have not done,8221; he justifies, much to Mayor Hareshwar Patil8217;s chagrin.

And what about the in-house PR Department, which comprises five officers and an office superintendent? 8220;They will continue doing their routine work,8221; he explains, adding that the private firm will concentrate on the BMC8217;s media coverage. 8220;For instance,8221; he continues, 8220;few are aware that Sion Hospital, which is a municipal hospital, is as good as Bombay Hospital.8221;What8217;s more, the commissioner is not stopping there. He says henceforth, private lawyers will be hired to hold the brief for the corporation.

Never mind that the BMC has a full-fledged Legal Department and a senior law officer. His argument: 8220;Things turn out different when ahigh-profile private lawyer fights a case compared to a not-so-popular civic lawyer.8221; He insists that private lawyers will be hired only for 8220;very important cases8221; such as the hawkers8217; plaza case. 8220;Look how the China Garden case was handled,8221; he smiles.

Careful not to dub the municipal staff as inefficient, Nalinakshan has no qualms while citing examples of how BMC has lost umpteen cases relating to unauthorised constructions. He cites an instance where a high-profile restaurant got away despite an illegal extension to its premises. 8220;I want a more forceful lot who have a flair for arguing in court,8221; he adds. 8220;No, our lawyers do not lack this. 8220;But they need to be motivated.8221;

Story continues below this ad

The commissioner is also quick to add that both the civic staff and the private firms will work in tandem. Drawing support from a decision of his predecessor, Girish Gokhale, to hire retired senior advocates to assist and guide civic lawyers, Nalinakshan is convinced his plans will make the Legal Department more accountable.Never mind that Gohkale8217;s plan has yet to bear fruit.

But who will monitor the class monitors? A systems management consultant, of course! The systems manager will keep the wheels of the corporation as a whole constantly turning besides juggling the BMC8217;s finances, he beams.

Gung-ho with the all-round support from the civic administration, Nalinakshan says there is no looking back now. The 1.5 lakh staff employed by the corporation are, of course, far from happy.