Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation’s 45th General Council Meeting ended in disruption on Tuesday after corporators raised concerns over sanitation tenders, street lighting and municipal protocol, while Ward No. 37 Corporator Bandita Pal was suspended for allegedly livestreaming the proceedings despite repeated objections.
The meeting was chaired by BMC Mayor Sulochana Das and attended by Commissioner Chanchal Rana, Deputy Mayor Manjulata Kanhara, additional commissioners Sasmita Sahu and Kailash Chandra Das, Chief Finance Officer Deepak Ranjan Behera, City Engineer Prafulla Kumar Raito, standing committee chairpersons, corporators and officials from several departments.
The first dispute concerned the inauguration of a road in Ward No. 10. Corporators alleged that neither the ward corporator nor the mayor had been invited to the event, describing the omission as an insult to the elected civic body. They demanded that the road be formally inaugurated again by the BMC. The protest ended after the mayor assured them that the civic body would organise a fresh inauguration.
Tensions increased when Pal allegedly began livestreaming the meeting on her mobile phone while continuing to raise questions to the mayor and commissioner. According to the BMC, the mayor, commissioner and other corporators objected to the broadcast, saying it violated the rules governing the council meeting. Pal allegedly continued livestreaming despite repeated requests to stop.
Other corporators considered walking out, following which Mayor Das suspended Pal from the meeting under Section 114(5) of the municipal law. The suspension was based on alleged disorderly conduct and disrespect towards the House. The remaining corporators later returned to their seats, allowing the meeting to continue.
The council then turned to concerns over streetlighting and sanitation arrangements across the city. Corporators questioned the delay in deploying a new sanitation agency even though the tendering process had been completed. Commissioner Rana said the agency had been selected, but the proposal had been sent to the state government for approval.
“The tender process had been completed, and the agency is selected. However, the proposal had been forwarded to the state government for approval, and implementation would begin after the necessary clearance was received,” Rana said.
Several corporators remained dissatisfied and staged a sit-in protest near the podium. The situation eased after the mayor and commissioner assured them that efforts would be made to resolve the issue within 10 days. The exchange highlighted how municipal service delivery can remain stalled after a tender is completed when higher-level administrative clearance is still pending.
The meeting also reviewed works approved by standing committees, the minutes of the previous meeting and progress on earlier decisions. A question-and-answer session allowed corporators to raise issues with the mayor and commissioner, while proposals submitted through standing committees were presented, discussed and approved by the House. Other suggestions from corporators and departmental officials were also taken up during the proceedings.
