Many councillors of Vellore Corporation have taken personal initiatives in their wards to ensure cleanliness, proper supply of water and that welfare measures reach beneficiaries.
Councillors of ward-22 and ward-25, Shivaji and Thangamani Anandhan, respectively, claim to have used their own money to supply water by private lorries. Shivaji claims he spends over `3,000 every week to supply about six tanks of water with a capacity of about 7,000 litres each, to his ward. Each tank supplies water to four streets, and every house is given 10 pots of water.
He said, “When a problem is brought to us, we approach the Corporation officials. But the public will not accept answers given by the Corporation staff, and ultimately, councillors have to face the brunt.”
He complains that when he approached officials with the bill to get a refund for the amount spent for water, he was turned away. “None of my bills were cleared so far,” he said, “And, I don’t think it would not be cleared in the future.”
Thangamani of ward-25 said she had been spending her own money to bring water to her ward since February, as her area had gone dry before summer. Echoing Shivaji’s sentiments, she said, “We are forced to solve problems in our wards by any means; at least to retain our reputation among the public.”
Member of Ward 54, Ushanandhini has been on a mass cleaning programme. She said, “If all the conservative workers in the Corporation is involved in mass cleaning in one ward every day, Vellore City can become a clean city in two months.”
She and the residents cleared the garbage in Usanpura street, in the last week of July. The reason was a shortage of Corporation staff. “We are tired of hearing complaints of shortage of personnel in the Corporation. But, the local women kept complaining about the problem of uncleared garbage and even protested.”
“So I along with ward residents launched the cleaning process. I had also instructed the residents to keep their environment clean,” she said.
Vijayalakshmi, member of ward-12 in Katpadi distributed 1,000 toothbrush and paste sets to two panchayat union schools and one orphanage in her area. She plans to hold health camps and give food to children during special days along with other councillors in the zone-1 Tharapadavedu of the Vellore Corporation.
Corporation Mayor P Karthiyayini said, “It is a welcome move that ward councillors take public problems and solve it with their own money, but she denies sluggishness of Corporation staff. “Despite, the shortage of staff , the Corporation takes steps to ensure sufficient action. We even rope in women from Self Help Groups as sanitary workers,” she said.
“More staff would be recruited by the end of the year and the Corporation will work in full swing from 2013,” she promised, “Until then, ideas from anyone would be considered.”
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