SOLAPUR, Sept 20: New areas in the recently-expanded Solapur Municipal Corporation (SMC) limits may not get many amenities because of the tussle between the Congress-dominated SMC and the Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena alliance government over funds. While Congress corporators claim that the government was ignoring the issue, alliance MLAs maintain that the SMC is misusing funds earmarked for these areas.The SMC had promised to change the face of the 11 gram panchayats merged in it in 1992. But it has failed to come up with proper planning. It has not allocated sufficient funds nor has been able to put up a united stand because of the political differences. However, the SMC has slapped taxes on the new residents.Shiv Sena MLA from North Solapur constituency, Uttam Prakash Khandare, who had promised essential facilities to the residents, blames the SMC for the situation. He said the merger decision was hasty. It was implemented by the then minister, Sushilkumar Shinde, to gain a political edge over his Congress rival Brahmadev Mane, he alleged. ``There was no plan nor a single paisa was set aside for development by the then Congress government,'' Khandare said. ``After seven long years, the SMC town planning department has no map,'' he pointed out.Khandare said the SMC had breached the Bombay Provincial Municipal Corporations Act 129-B which says the SMC should spend the amount received in the form of taxes, for development. ``To date, the SMC has recovered Rs 57 crore from the new areas, but spent only Rs 7 crore on them. Where has the money gone,'' he asked.The SMC collected Rs 6 crore between 1992 and 1996, Rs 1.94 crore in 1996-97, and Rs 2.97 crore in 1997-98 as taxes. Besides, the State Government allocated Rs 6.75 crore for development.The SMC pocketed Rs 43 crore octroi collection from those areas. ``The extended areas are a solid source of income for the empty SMC coffers,'' he said. ``After I was elected as an MLA, I had roads and public lavatories built and street lights installed using money from the special aid of the State Government and MLA's fund,'' he claimed.He said whatever the work the SMC claims to have accomplished was only on paper. ``The money has gone into the pockets of the Congress leaders,'' he alleged.Khadare lambasted the decision to take over the water supply scheme at Yeshwant reservoir from the Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran. The mayor has said the scheme would be taken over soon to avoid the water cutoff threat by the pradhikaran. ``Where is the pipeline to fetch the water? And where will the water be stored,'' he asked.He sought immediate dissolution of the SMC. ``It is mired in corruption and can't plan a thing,'' he said. During the September 8 meeting of Western Maharashtra Shiv Sena MLAs with Chief Minister Manohar Joshi in Mumbai, ``I had handed over a memorandum seeking dissolution,'' Khadare said.He flayed the SMC scheme during the then commissioner Bipin Mallick's period to charge huge sums for regularising illegal structures in the merged areas. The State Government has not cleared the scheme, he informed. He asked the SMC to legalise the structures or refund the Rs 2 crore collected from the owners.
