MARGAO
All eyes are on the final meeting of the current term of the Margao Municipal Council (MMC), scheduled for May 20, though for reasons far removed from routine civic business.
The meeting has assumed significance amid a raging controversy over whether the previous council meeting had actually approved the initiation of the tendering process for door-to-door waste collection, or whether the matter had instead been deferred for the next council to decide after the May 2026 civic polls.
The controversy erupted after the council circulated the minutes of the earlier meeting, stating that a resolution proposed and seconded by councillors to initiate the tendering process had been duly passed. However, the Congress has strongly disputed the claim, insisting that no such resolution was adopted. Party leaders have even produced newspaper reports to support their contention that chairperson Damu Shirodkar had publicly stated after the meeting that the issue had been deferred.
Adding to the confusion was a press briefing by the Margao civic chief on Monday, during which he pointed out to the media that the Goa Municipalities Act grants discretionary powers to the municipal chairperson to take decisions on certain matters.
The statement has triggered fresh questions both within the corridors of the municipal building and outside. Did the civic chief invoke his discretionary powers to initiate the door-to-door tender process after the council had allegedly deferred the matter? If so, how do the official minutes indicate that the council itself had passed a resolution proposed and seconded by councillors?
Questions are being raised whether the ruling BJP council would still go ahead and confirm the controversial minutes of the previous meeting or place a fresh proposal at the May 20 meeting seeking approval for the tendering of the Rs 6.5 crore door-to-door waste collection tender.
Media under scrutiny amid controversy
The media, too, has come under sharp focus in the wake of the controversy. Almost the entire local media had reported that the MMC decided to defer the tendering process after councillors Ganashyam Shirodkar and Shagun Naik argued that the matter should be left for the incoming council to decide after the civic elections.
However, with the official minutes now stating that the council had adopted a resolution to proceed with the tendering process, questions are being raised over whether the media had incorrectly reported the council’s decision.
Sources, however, argue that even if the reporting was inaccurate, the chairperson had ample opportunity to clarify the position immediately after the reports appeared.
“If the Margao civic chief could convene a press conference following the police complaint filed by the Congress over the resolution, why was a similar clarification not issued earlier if the media had indeed misreported the proceedings?” questioned a civic official.
Controversy triggers debate over powers of civic administrators
MARGAO: As the row intensifies over the MMC’s move to clear the door-to-door waste collection tender before the council’s term ends on May 26, a critical question has come to the fore ” do government-appointed administrators lack the powers to float tenders in the absence of an elected council?
The issue has assumed significance amid perceptions that the BJP-ruled civic body is rushing through the tendering process as though no mechanism would remain in place to initiate or finalise the contract after the present council’s tenure expires.
MMC chairperson Damu Shirodkar said the municipal elections were initially expected to be held in May. At the previous council meeting, some councillors had argued that the decision to float the door-to-door waste collection tender should be left to the new council expected to assume office after the polls.
However, with the civic elections now postponed indefinitely and no clarity on when the polls will eventually take place, the chairperson pointed out that the existing door-to-door waste collection contract is due to expire in July, barely two months away.
With the State government expected to appoint administrators to municipal bodies after the current term ends on May 26, a key question remains unanswered ” whether an administrator would be empowered to float tenders, invite bids from prospective contractors, and finalise the contract before the existing agreement with the current operators, Bapu and Green Globe, expires in July.
