CCP polls to elect new mayor on March 20

PANAJI: With the election for the post of mayor of the corporation of the city of Panaji slated for March 20, outgoing mayor Surendra Furtado said he would relinquish his position on March 19, contradicting rumours that Furtado had resigned on Friday. The 30 CCP councillors will vote to elect the mayor and deputy mayor for the city.
“Before I relinquish the office after a tenure of two years, I wish to place on record the major works and projects, with a request to the commissioner to follow up the same on priority basis so that the benefits of these projects reach the citizens of Panaji,” Furtado said.
Furtado enjoyed two terms as a mayor with the backing of St Cruz MLA Atanasio ‘Babush’ Monserrate. Since then, things have soured between Monserrate and Furtado.
Since taking over office in April 2013, Furtado has been instrumental in securing garbage collection trucks, weed cutting machines amidst other machinery. He has also succeeded in garnering funds to purchase dustbins for households and residential complexes, but the bins are yet to be handed over.
Amid the list of projects that remain to be completed, and that need commissioner of CCP Sanjit Rodrigues’ action, is the much-awaited pay parking proposal that was hotly debated both by councillors and locals. After much wrangling and delays, 18 different roads were earmarked for pay parking. The final meeting on the issue was held in December, where all councillors had given their permission to implement pay parking on a trial basis in two phases once the district magistrate and superintendent of Police (Traffic) had given the permissions. But, the project has yet to see the light of day and the city continues to struggle with traffic jams and haphazard parking.
Furtado had also managed to kick start the 1,979.17-lakh e-governance project, which would effectively implement the rules and procedures of CCP while also maximizing revenue collection.
Sanctioned under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), 80% of the funds for the project have been borne by the central government and 395.83 lakh for the project has already been released, Furtado informed.
Besides this, CCP has handed over two crucial works, the development of St Inez creek and the solid waste management plant at Bainguinim, Old Goa, to the Goa state infrastructure development corporation (GSIDC), since CCP does not have the technical expertise to implement the projects, Furtado said. Interestingly, Rodrigues is also the managing director of GSIDC.