Water crisis, sanitation dominate Secunderabad Cantonment Board meet

Secunderabad: Water scarcity, sanitation issues and better facilities for Cantonment General Hospital took centre stage at the Secunderabad Cantonment Board (SCB) budget proposal meeting held here on Tuesday. With the Secunderabad Cantonment reeling under acute water scarcity, the eight ward members proposed for the construction of new bore wells, harvesting pits and increasing water tankers for the smooth flow of water supply and to decrease the water charges.

B Anitha, member, Ward III, said there is an urgent need to repair the water pipelines. She said water tankers were not reaching in time and failing to ensure proper supply, as per the needs of the residents. She also proposed for the construction of a bridge at Valla Sir Laxmi Colony. J Maheshwar Reddy, ward member 1, SCB, proposed for the increase of sanitary staff and transfer of sanitary inspectors.

Budget proposal 2019-20

1. Total estimated budget is Rs 227 cr
2. Deficit budget is Rs 99.87 cr
3. Property tax is estimated as Rs 33 cr
4. Service charges is estimated as Rs 26 cr
5. Transfer of property tax is estimated as Rs 11 cr
6. Water supply and repair works are estimated as Rs 17 cr
7. For maintenance and repair works of buildings Rs 4.5 cr
8. The military conservancy Rs 11 cr
9. Trade license Rs 3.5 cr
10. Health and hygiene is estimated as Rs 6 cr

Rs 227 cr budget for 2019-20

A proposal of Rs 227 crore was put up. It will be submitted to the General Officer Commanding (GOC) in C, SC, Pune, under rule 16 of the Cantonment Account Code 1924 for sanction. SV Chandra Sekhar, Chief Executive Officer of SCB presented the budget proposal. Rs 4 cr budget was proposed for hospital maintenance that includes recruiting qualified staff, equipment in the hospital and Rs 99 cr for administration.

The total estimated budget for SCB 2019-20 is Rs 227 crore and Rs 99.87 cr for deficit budget. It was estimated to allocate Rs 26 cr for service charges and Rs 11 cr for transfer of property tax.

The budget estimated for water supply and repair works of the motor pump at Balamari pump house is estimated to be Rs 17 cr and Rs 6 cr for repair works and a new water pipeline.

The budget estimated for maintenance of drains and repairs, which also includes works to open drain/nala for construction of retaining wall, is estimated to be Rs 6 crore. For maintenance and repair works of buildings in the cantonment, Rs 4.5 cr is estimated, and a budget of Rs 11 cr is estimated for military conservancy.