Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar civic body working without corporators for 5 years now

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Monday marked five years of the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation working without elected representatives. For five years, which is a full term of a local civic body, an administrator has looked after the working of the municipal corporation here.
While uncertainty still looms large over fresh civic elections due to legal issues, people have had mixed reactions to the municipal corporation running without corporators.
Balasaheb Mule, a senior citizen from the Garkheda area, said residents' problems remained the same, whether under an administrator or a fully elected body. "The city continues to grapple with water scarcity. We are still struggling with basic issues such as garbage collection and drainage systems. I didn't come across any public debate over the need for corporators," he said.
Deepak Rajhans, a resident of the Hudco area, however, said corporators are needed. "It depends on how proactive a corporator is. Every time one cannot lodge an online complaint or contact civic officials to raise civic issues," he said.
During the administrator's tenure, the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation (CSMC) dealt effectively with the Covid pandemic, with some of its practices receiving special mention in Parliament. The local civic body reported a gradual rise in tax collection over five years and also witnessed action against illegal water connections — all without undue influence of corporators. Some of the policy decisions regarding property tax, including a higher tax regime for newly registered properties after the set deadline, evoked angry public reactions, with a section of residents saying they felt the absence of corporators to raise their voice.
An independent analyst, Manojkumar Kumar, said people's representation in the municipal corporation is a must. "Compared to other major cities, civic awareness is low in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. There is no way for residents to put pressure on the civic administration. It will be highly idealistic to expect the civic administration to work in a pro-people manner on its own. The quality of people's representation is debatable, but it must be in place as per the Constitution," he said.
Kishor Nagare, a former Shiv Sena corporator, said he has been serving people in his ward for the past five years. "Many people don't understand that the term of the civic body has expired. They contact us for their work. We have been maintaining a strong public connection and voicing their concerns before the civic administration," he said.
Civic activist Vijay Kumbhar said there has been dictatorship in local self-governing bodies because of the pending elections. "The judiciary must give its verdict on pending issues soon. Parties in govt are silent on the need for early elections, and the opposition has become a mute spectator. The extended rule of administrators across the state is killing our democracy," said Kumbhar, who is also the vice-president of AAP in Maharashtra.
A senior civic official said residents are, by and large, satisfied. "While corporators are considered public representatives, we are also known as public servants. In the absence of corporators, MLAs and MPs, state and central govts are watching our performance. We have to deliver people-centric administration," he said.