Chandigarh administrator’s advisory council meeting: Admn to present action-taken reports on October 8

The administration will submit action-taken reports on the recommendations of the nine standing committees of the administrator’s advisory council members in a meeting on October 8.

The administration has scheduled the meeting in nine slots, one for each committee, starting from 10am. There will be a presentation of 15 to 20 minutes followed by a discussion.

“UT administrator Banwari Lal Purohit has asked for a review of the recommendations of each of the standing committees and action taken by the administration thereon,” said a senior UT official.

Notably, this is the first time when a special advisory council meeting is being convened to assess only the implementation progress of the recommendations or decisions of the committees.

For long, members of the council derided the ineffectiveness of the council and unresponsiveness of the administration to their suggestions. “In the last advisory council meeting chaired by former UT administrator VP Singh Badnore, some of the members demanded that the administration should regularly submit action taken reports. It was also suggested to break-up the advisory council meeting into smaller groups to make it manageable. There are 60 members in the council in addition to senior UT officials,” the official further stated.

In the first introductory meet of the council on September 2, after Purohit took over as the UT administrator, the issue of its effectiveness came up again. The administrator had assured that steps will be taken to streamline its working including submission of action taken reports.

The council’s two-year tenure, which ended on August 5, was extended to March 31, 2022. The present 60-member council was constituted in August 2019. The apex advisory body of the administration last met in February this year. In its two-year tenure, the council proved inconsequential in the delivery of any crucial decisions or resolving long standing issues of the city.

Headed by the UT administrator, it is responsible for advising the administration on development issues and policy matters affecting the city, and gives a platform to the residents to air their views.