Water and beauty of city: Mayor's priority

responsibility

She may be relatively new to politics, but not a novice. City’s new Mayor, who is also the first dalit woman to occupy the post tells Preethi Nagaraj that her path is laden with challenges, and she hopes to meet them heads on. Sorting infrastructure issues, planning of efficient water supply system are her priority.

A total Mysorean to the core. Gentle by speech, completed rooted in history, accurate by facts and history. A mother of two young children, Mayor M C Rajeshwari is an epitome of all working women in the country.

That, if you can constantly strive beyond your limitations, your aspirations will take you beyond your expectations some day. A working mother with a job that demands her commitment and attention 24/7, and first citizen of the city to boot, Rajeshwari has placed her children in her mother’s care so as to be able to give 100 per cent to her prestigious assignment. She is a graduate in Bachelor of Arts from Maharani College. 

As Mayor of Mysore, she feels water supply needs to be made efficient and city’s beautification has to be taken up with more serious planning. “Right now, agreement with JUSCO to provide water for the city is on. But, the water woes are also increasing by the day. We have to look at a way which can yield us with some solution to meet this water challenge,” says Rajeshwari.

Without the agreement tenure getting over, there seems to be nothing that MCC can do now to make the situation better. “The city has been dug up, in a haphazard manner to carry out many developmental works.

Unless we get on with closing the trenches, city is going to get uglier, and more uncomfortable in terms of vehicles moving around. This has caused a big problem for people and we hope we will be able to finish this assignment before monsoon begins,” she adds.

Another issue that has been constantly bothering the beauty of the city is that of waste disposal and garbage management. With apartments and high rise constructions increasing in the last few years, city has a bigger problem at hand.

“Under Ground Drainage (UGD) system needs to be made more robust and its capacity has to be expanded to help handle increased population. Garbage disposal needs to get innovative since there is shortage of space and manpower to even sustain the conventional methods,” she says.

Her tenure as Mayor has come at a crucial phase when city is enroute to becoming ‘Greater Mysore’ soon. Population has increased, and so has the issues of providing basic facilities to everyone. It would be a bigger challenge for Rajeshwari to log a lot of work in a short duration of ten months. “I will make an honest effort to implement schemes that have been proposed in the budget for the current year.

We plan to keep track of works by way of holding meeting of officers in charge, at least twice a week. Those who are lagging behind in doing their duty, would be brought to book,” she added. Further, she said that the JNnurm works that are progressing at snail’s pace, will also be speeded up.

Soon as she assumed office, first news that has hit people as a bolt from the blue is that of exorbitant hike in water tariff.

Offering an explanation, Rajeshwari says this change in tariff is implemented all over the state, and not in Mysore alone. “It is imperative to increase some taxes to be able to plan better developmental works,” she says in the tone of a seasoned politician. Signing off, she says her dreams are not made of gold.

“As a Mayor, I want to be able to do a good job. Whatever I do, I want to do it with honesty, integrity and give my best to complete the assignment, with everyone’s cooperation,” she says with a smile.