Warangal: Officials gear up for Pattana Pragathi

Warangal: After implementing Palle Pragathi in two phases, the State government has now set its eyes on 'Pattana Pragathi', aimed at changing face of municipalities. Speaking at a meeting here on Sunday, Warangal Urban District Collector Rajeev Gandhi Hanumanthu told the officials to chalk out action plans for the effective implementation of Pattana Pragathi later this month.

He directed the officials to take measures to constitute four committees each for all 58 Divisions of the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC) on February 17 and 18. He emphasised the need for ensuring the participation of senior citizens, women, youth and NGOs in the committees so that they could provide suggestions to the authorities in the implementation of Pattana Pragathi.

"In all, 14 supervisors, 58 special officers and same number of support staff have been deputed for the town development programme," the Collector said. Referring to the new municipal laws, the Collector said that officials need to focus on sanitation and Haritha Haram, he said. The onus is on officials to ensure survival of plants planted during the Haritha Haram programme, he added.

As part of the Pattana Pragathi programme, the officials were directed to identify government land in the urban areas and utilise them for parking and other civic needs.

The officials were also told to set up nurseries besides encouraging citizens to plant saplings so that to improve green cover. He also told the officials to construct vegetable and meat markets wherever necessary. "The need of the hour is to sensitise people about the ill-effects of plastics," the Collector said. He told the officials to create a WhatsApp group so that they could coordinate well with each other.

Additional Collector S Dayanand said that they have appointed officials who have worked for the Palle Pragathi as supervisors to make their experience count. Municipal Commissioner Pamela Satpathy said that the civic body is using 163 Swachh auto-rickshaws to collect garbage. She said that they have been focusing on collecting 100 per cent property tax. "Stringent action such as cancelling house number would be taken against those habitual defaulters, who continue to evade paying property tax," Pamela Satpathy said. Municipal Deputy Commissioner G Raju and Zilla Parishad CEO Prasoona Rani were among others present.