GVMC budget for 2024-25 approved

Visakhapatnam: Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation’s (GVMC) budget for the year 2024-25 was approved by the majority of council members here on Tuesday.

However, members of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) walked out of the House saying that they are boycotting the budget session which was no way close to reality but just a presentation of numbers with an estimation of Rs 5,457 crore. During the budget discussion, members of the TDP raised objections. TDP floor leader Peela Srinivasa Rao pointed out that there was no meeting held with the corporators before preparing the budget and proposals were not included in the agenda.

Earlier, the Opposition corporators demanded that the issue of sanitation should be discussed, but the Speaker of the council did not allow it to happen. Due to this, members of the ruling party and Opposition got into a serious argument. Later, the city Mayor G Hari Venkata Kumari read out the budget details to the council and allowed the members to speak on various issues.

93 Ward corporator Raparthi Triveni Vara Prasad questioned why action was not taken after many errors were found in the audit. He mentioned that the state audit raised objections over 1,407 items worth Rs 77 crore. He said with the negligence of GVMC officials, the corporation was losing revenue and demanded an answer from them. Jana Sena Party corporator Kandula Nagaraju pointed out that the works were done in the wards of the ruling party but not in the Opposition party wards. The Mayor repeatedly asked Kandulu Nagaraju to talk about the budget alone, but the corporator did not agree and demanded an answer from the officials why funds are not being allocated to their wards. Further, he went to the Mayor’s podium and sat in front of the podium.

After warning the corporator several times, the Mayor suspended him from the house. As all the Opposition parties surrounded the Mayor to withdraw the decision, the YSRCP corporators also reached the podium in support of the Mayor and got into a heated argument.

Finally, the Mayor withdrew the decision and the budget was approved. The Mayor announced that Rs 2 crore funds are being allocated in the budget to

each ward.