Transfer of joint municipal commissioner

the transfer of joint municipal commissioner ajay mehta to the centre is a blow for the civic corporation. mehta who was handling the two important departments of octroi and estates in the corporation was a strict officer. when the news of his transfer spread, the deputy municipal commissioners (dmcs) in the corporation mounted pressure on the municipal commissioner k nalinakshan, that a senior deputy municipal commissioner must be promoted to the post of the joint municipal commissioner. the dmcs in the corporation were against the appointment of an ias officer for this post. when ajay mehta was appointed in the corporation, there was a lot of hue and cry made by them. they claimed that the higher-ups in the administration were neglecting their hard work. hence this time, nalinakshan has split the two departments and not filled the vacant post. deputy municipal commissioner sr dange has been given the charge of octroi and director of engineering services, yl vyas has been given the charge of estates. according to sources, dange was lobbying for the post of joint municipal commissioner on the grounds that he was the senior most dmc. but according to rules, a senior dmc must first handle the personnel charge which dange was not interested in. due to these anomalies, it was decided to split the two departments. a large number of estate properties will be coming up for renewal, within the next two years, said bmc sources. hence the administration felt that officers from the engineering and development department would do it more justice, than anybody else. bombaytimes@indiatimes.com