Srinagar, Oct 26: At a time when the government claims facing severe financial crunch so much so that it put hospitalized patients on “crash diet”, the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) seems to be lavishly spending on the facelift of its office chambers.
 A huge conference hall adjacent to the Commissioner’s office has been sliced into two. While one of the rooms will continue to serve as the conference hall, the other will add to the SMC commissioner’s office.
 Greater Kashmir learnt from reliable sources that the office of SMC commissioner and the adjacent chambers in the first floor of the building at Karan Nagar are getting a major facelift including installation of Kahtumbandh ceiling, wooden paneling and air conditioning.
 Besides, the sources said, a additional staircase is to be constructed for the visitors so that the commissioner’s walkway remains exclusive.
 While Rs ten lakh have already been earmarked for the initial facelift, the total expenditure is likely to cross Rs two million mark, the sources said.

THE FACELIFT
 Apart from the air-conditioning of the block, wooden paneling has been approved for the walls while traditional Khatam Bandh ceiling will add to the beauty of the office chambers. Besides, the sources said, flooring will also be laid afresh in wooden while new furniture will be procured in the coming months.
 As about the present staircase, sources said, it will be exclusively for the Commissioner’s use while a new steel staircase will be erected for those coming to the meeting hall.
 While the officials plead that the new staircase was needed to decongest the old staircase, the issue has drawn flak from some officials who term it “extravagance.”
 “Is Commissioner sahib such a high profile officer that he needs a separate walkway?” argued an official.

THE IDEA
 Interestingly the idea of the swanky office struck the minds of SMC officials when the ongoing unrest erupted in Kashmir in June against the killing of teenager Tufail Ahmed Mattoo.
 Subsequently, in July when the Valley was on boil and normal life almost paralyzed, the tenders were floated.
 Presently, the work is on and the SMC has put a ten week deadline for its completion.

THE IRONY
 The SMC “extravagance” has drawn flak from various quarters including the officials in the Housing and Urban Development department who term it “misuse of funds”.
 Pertinently, the development has come at a time when the state is looking for austere even in administering patients at the government run hospitals.
 Unlike the past the government has stopped the free distribution of food to the in-patients except for those having a Below Poverty Line card.
 Besides, the rich but comparatively costly food items like mutton and milk have been altogether deleted from the menu even as the patients are being offered mere Dal Chawal.

OFFICIALS SPEAK
 When contacted the SMC Commissioner Sheikh Mushtaq pleaded that the facelift was the need of the hour.
 “This is necessary. We are giving a show to the meeting hall as the old one had gone obsolete… We had to convene most of the meetings in the Corporate Hall but as that is meant for the Council people so there was a need to have another meeting hall for general purpose,” the Commissioner told Greater Kashmir.
 He, however, said there was nothing wrong with the renovation and that no special permission was required for the job.
 “This is not a new construction but renovation of the old,” he added.

BOTTOMLINE
 The SMC has shown seriousness towards the “swanky renovation” at a time when the corporation is often accused of having failed to perform its basic duties like sanitation and check on illegal building constructions.
 The civic body has even allegedly failed to tackle the stray cattle menace on the City streets while the officials often plead the inability in the garb of ongoing unrest!

Lastupdate on : Tue, 26 Oct 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 26 Oct 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 27 Oct 2010 00:00:00 IST