Nanded’s 15th mayor to take oath today, but city has no official bungalow for her

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: As the Nanded-Waghala Municipal Corporation (NWMC) prepares to welcome its 15th mayor on Tuesday, the absence of an official bungalow for the mayor has again come to the fore. The year marked 30 years of the municipal corporation, but the city never provided an official residence to its mayor.The Nanded Municipal Council was established in 1952. At that time, the law did not include any provision for an official residence for the council president. As a result, all civic heads, from Shankarrao Chavan to Narendra Pal Barara, performed their duties while staying in their personal homes. In the early years, facilities were minimal, with no official vehicles or telephone connections at residences. Records also mentioned that Shankarrao Chavan travelled to the municipal office on a bicycle despite holding the top civic post.In 1996, the municipal councils of Nanded and Waghala were merged to form the municipal corporation. An elected body took charge the following year, and Sudhakar Pandhare became the first mayor. Around that time, an old bungalow located in the present women's hospital premises, at Shyam Nagar, was renovated and designated the mayor's residence. While some early mayors used the bungalow, a senior official later occupied it for a long period, and over time, it stopped being recognised as the mayor's bungalow.Nearly 29 years have passed since the corporation was formed, and six municipal elections have been held during this period. The civic body constructed several buildings and complexes, both on its own and through BOT projects, and earned good revenue from some of them. However, it did not build official bungalows for the mayor, municipal commissioner or additional commissioner.In many cities across Maharashtra, including Mumbai, mayors are provided with official bungalows and support staff. In contrast, this civic body, which was once headed by late CM Shankarrao Chavan and MP Ashok Chavan, continues to lack such basic facilities. While the municipal commissioner has been allotted a bungalow in Sneha Nagar Colony through the public works department, no such arrangement exists for the mayor, a newly elected BJP corporator pointed out.New mayor, Kavita Santosh Mule, a teacher by profession, currently lives in a residential area at Taroda Budruk, which has a very narrow approach road. Ahead of her oath-taking on Tuesday, the mayor's chamber at the civic headquarters has been prepared. Though a vehicle and driver have been provided, the issue of an official mayor's bungalow remains unresolved, the commissioner said.A senior civic official said, "A proposal was earlier sent to the health department to allot the govt hospital bungalow opposite the civic building for the mayor in exchange for municipal land at Shyam Nagar, but no decision has yet been taken."