Thane’s miracle man has had enough of Mumbai

MUMBAI: After working miracles in Thane and Nagpur, he was thought to be the man who could change the face of Mumbai. But MMRDA Joint Commissioner T Chandrashekhar, poster boy of the state bureaucracy, is ready to throw in the towel.

An MMRDA source said the IAS officer is disgusted with the criticism, red tape, and lack of executive power. Rumour says he has two foreign assignments in the bag.

Chandrashekhar retorted: "You want me to fight a war without weapons and a force and then dub it a failure. It's difficult to fight with the enemy within. What can you do when insecure people constantly think of you as a threat? How can I run with my legs tied?"

He broke his silence on the system and infighting. "Why are we under audit for poor performance? The MMRDA is working on complicated projects and 20 of the worst roads. But those (read BMC) who collect crores in taxes and have over 1,20,000 staffers are blaming us for their failure."

The divide between the authorities was exposed when Chandrashekhar accused the BMC of non-cooperation: "We have to seek their permission for small things. How can we move fast without executive powers and enough workers?"

Slamming the BMC for its failure to implement the storm-water drain project and disaster management report, he said, "We had to clear their mess but are being criticised for the failure."

Netas promote no-gooders: Chandrashekhar

The anger and frustration is clearly showing. Known as an officer to take swift actions, joint commissioner Dr T Chandrashekhar's tenure in MMRDA is very unlike his working style. The officer who once held the powerful post of municipal commissioner in Thane and Nagpur, is caught between the slow-paced Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on one hand and a reactive Maharashtra government on the other.

In an exclusive interview, the man touted to make Mumbai as a throbbing megapolis, broke his silence on issues facing the redevelopment of the city. Some excerpts:

Reason behind 26/7
"It is the corporation's failure in implementing the storm water - BRIMSTOWAD project. In 1993, international consultants were appointed spending crores for a detailed study, along with a phase-wise implementation programme. There is enough evidence to state that the less than 50 per cent of the budgetary provisions for storm water was not utilised by the BMC between 1993-2005. As per the report, the Mithi river clearance should have been completed by now and also the Mahul Creek. Only 80 per cent of the work is implemented. Why is no one made accountable for this lapse? The 2000 report on disaster management was lying in dust. Who is responsible for life and property loss?"

Unfair target
"The MMRDA is working on 160-km road project for the past six months and already a technical audit has begun. As the city roads were in shambles, we were asked to take up complicated infrastructure projects in difficult terrain. And at every step - whether it is drainage, road etc we have to take the corporation's permissions, which are usually delayed. How can MMRDA show pace in its civic projects when we do not have executive powers? Our staff strength is 250, while BMC has over 1,20,000 people. My engineering department has 30 people in comparison to 10,000 of the BMC. Organisations which collect taxes, has manpower with executive and legal power is not made accountable and we are unfairly targeted. We took over 50 kms of Eastern and Western Express Highway from the PWD, but they are yet to hand us the 60 staff in two divisions who have no work."

Can we change?
"The system must give powers only to those officers who are accountable to their work. But unfortunately, non-performing officers are picked up by politicians and promoted. There is no official communication on the slum deadline shifting to year 2000 and delay means that we have only laid 126 km of drainage of the 450 km target. This delay is finally going to be costly for the city."