Municipal Corporations (Mahanagar Palikas)
A Municipal Corporation (Mahanagar Palika) is an urban local government body in India. They to administer urban areas that have a population of more than 10 lakh people. Municipal Corporations' role is to provide essential community services in the areas of health care, education, housing, transport etc.
In India, a total of 14 cities have the largest Municipal Corporations in India. This includes Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkatta, Chennai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Kanpur, Lucknow, Vishakhapatnam, Surat, Jaipur, and Nagpur. The richest Municipal Corporation in India is Mumbai's Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
In a Municipal Corporation, the Mayor is a ceremonial head while the Municipal Commissioner is an administrative head. The state government is in-charge of appointing a Municipal Commissioner who must be an IAS officer. The job of the Municipal Commissioner is to implement the policies of the Municipal Corporation and create the budget.
Following is an indicative list of key functions of a Municipal Corporation:
- Urban planning including town planning.
- Regulating of land-use and construction of buildings
- Planning for economic and social development
- Ensuring the provision of water supply for domestic, industrial, and commercial purposes
- Working on public health, sanitation, and solid waste management
- Safeguarding the interests of economically weaker sections of society, and differently-abled people
- Working on the improvement of slum housing
- Ensuring the provision of amenities and facilities such as parks, gardens, playgrounds
- Ensuring availability of burial grounds, cremation grounds, and electric crematoriums
- Preventing cruelty towards animals
- Maintaining a record of births and deaths
- Provide public amenities including street lighting, parking areas, and bus stops