The Telegraph profiles half-a-dozen officials who have a lot to answer for Prasanta Chatterjee Who?s he? The Mayor The chargesheet: Doesn?t give a damn about the city to which he owes his job. Even after a 4-year-old boy died after falling into a manhole in Ultadanga ? in his 1998 Lok Sabha constituency ? showed little sympathy. His excuse for the flooding: I was not tipped off by the Met Office. ?There is not a single street that is not waterlogged.? As if that made it bearable. Takes no initiative. Opposed Operation Sunshine to clear the roads of hawkers lest Alimuddin Street take offence. The DEFENCE: ?If the roads are so bad, how did Atal Behari Vajpayee move around in a car? Despite constraints, we have done our best. We have undertaken the largest medical relief operation this year.? Asim Dasgupta Who?s he? West Bengal finance minister The chargesheet: Penny wise, pound foolish. Withholds funds sought by the irrigation department to clear Calcutta?s drainage. He refused to sanction a Rs 250-cr plan for the Bagjola and Krishnapur canals and Tolly?s Nullah. So say his Cabinet colleague and irrigation minister Ganesh Mondol and member, mayor-in-council (drainage), Chnchal Ghosh. Shows his concern for the city by sometimes acting as traffic policeman. But when it comes to distribution of resources, Calcutta gets a wide berth. Has failed to negotiate with foreign financial institutions for adequate funds for development. The DEFENCE: Usually it is a flat denial but he was not available for comment as he was touring the districts. Ashok Bhattacharya Who?s he? West Bengal urban development minister The chargesheet: Functions like he is chief minister of Siliguri, his hometown. Diverts development projects from Calcutta to Siliguri. Wants his hometown to become like Calcutta (God forbid). Not the mayor?s best friend: has a communication gap with civic authorities. The defence: ?The drainage system is more than 100 years old and not good enough to tackle rainfall of this level. We could have set things right had we been able to implement the 1993 megacity project. We have got Rs 90 crore of the Rs 1,600 crore we should have got from this project. So how is it possible to get things right? Once a few projects we are negotiating with the ADB and World Bank materialise, the drainage and sewerage will improve. Asim Barman Who?s he? Commissioner, CMC. The chargesheet: High on promises, low on delivery. Takes up projects that the CMC cannot afford. Like renovating New Market and cleaning sewers. Cannot push ideas through. Abandons them half-way. Passed the flood buck to nature: ?It?s a natural calamity.? He sought to get a credit rating of the CMC done so that it could convince potential lenders that it was bankable. Obviously that effort, too, has not succeeded because he keeps complaining of the lack of resources. The defence: ?Getting rid of so much water requires several thousand crores of rupees. You get us the money, we?ll give you the ultra-modern city you want. Draining our storm water is not high priority among civic amenity investments. Sudhangsu Sil Who?s he? Member, mayor-in-council (roads) The chargesheet: Well, just look at the roads. Promised to eliminate contractors to ensure that those who built and maintained roads were more accountable. It isn?t showing. Announced in 1997 that about 250 kms of roads would be covered with mastic asphalt. Barely 50 km have been covered. He is also in charge of the pipe sewers, a responsibility often forgotten. More interested in making cosmetic changes ? like planting fountains.. The defence: ?Waterlogging damages roads here because most of them have bitumen coatings. Coating 3,000 km of city roads with concrete is a dream. Too little money, too much work.? Chanchal Ghosh Who?s he? Member, mayor-in-council (drainage) The chargesheet: Has not had the brick sewers ? the main underground sewerage lines ? cleaned for several years. His excuse? No money. Has not tried to upgrade the pumping stations ? many of the pumps are about a 100 years old and do not have enough power to drain out water after heavy rain. Yet, pats himself for having done well so what if residents in Tiljala complain even six days after the rain. The defence: ?I have kept my promise to the city. We have acted faster than before and drained out 400 mm of water in 56 hours. We could have functioned better if the irrigation department cooperated.