Patna, April 12: A team comprising members of Patna Municipal Corporation’s (PMC’s) empowered standing committee, headed by mayor Afzal Imam, is set to visit Kerala to take part in a world conference of mayors on urban renewal.

The four-day programme is being hosted at Koyalam in the south Indian state from April 22. The event has been organised by the All India Institute of Local Self Government. Imam said the institute invited the committee members and it would be a great opportunity for them to interact with councillors and mayors from different parts of the country and other nations.

“As our team in the empowered standing committee is being constituted for the first time, the members will get a good exposure and learn several things. About seven councillors and I will fly to Kerala for the conference,” he said.

The mayor also said the new standing committee is set to take oath tomorrow following a Supreme Court order. The team promises to pace up many pending works and projects. The elected representatives will push the administrative and executive officials for the projects once the committee starts functioning, said Imam.

Recently, the Supreme Court had upheld the mayor’s decision to form a new empowered standing committee. The judgment passed said the committee would have members nominated by the mayor. According to sources, Imam had challenged the state government’s decision to continue with the committee appointed by the previous mayor, Sanjay Kumar, in Patna High Court. The high court had upheld the government’s decision. Imam had then moved the apex court challenging the high court verdict.

Sources also said Imam had nominated seven members in the committee of his choice under Section 21 of Bihar Municipal Act after he ousted Kumar. The elections to the post of the mayor and the deputy mayor were held mid-term in July, 2009 after PMC councillors decided to remove former mayor Sanjay Kumar and his deputy Santosh Kumar Mehta through a no-confidence motion.

The elections for a new mayor and deputy mayor could be held only a year later, in June 2010, as the former office-bearers had challenged the corporation board’s meeting in the high court. Imam said the new committee would take oath in the Patna district magistrate’s office on Wednesday.