A day ahead of assuming the mayor’s office for the second successive term, Prakash Asthana on Sunday pledged to fulfil his pre-poll promises for the residents of Motihari.

“I am committed to providing the people of Motihari, who have made me a mayor for the second time, with all civic facilities and make it a polythene-free town. I have plans to bring about a host of civic changes in the town, including construction of planned drains, beautification of the existing parks and construction of new ones and development of Motijheel,” he told The Telegraph.

“We want to stop the use of polythene packets in a bid to prevent clogging of drains. We have decided to promote thongas (paper packets) as a permanent substitute for polythene carry bags,” Asthana added.

Besides the Subhas Park, situated in heart of the town, the city has about half-a-dozen parks, but most of them are neglected. Beautification of these parks is another priority of Asthana.

The municipality will also launch a drive to beautify Motijheel, which, besides dividing Motihari into two parts, has been a centre of attraction for tourists. The estimated cost of the project will be over Rs 100 crore. “The detailed project report for the proposed development of the lake is almost complete. We have also taken the consent of the state urban development ministry,” Asthana said.