Bhubaneswar, Dec. 12: Increase in the jurisdictions of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) without a commensurate increase in their manpower is affecting the working of these organisations.

The BMC Council has agreed to include five more villages from three gram panchayats of Patrapada, Tamando and Paikirapur. The BDA has increased its plan area from 419sqkm to 1,000sqkm. But the development authority needs more people in the officer’s ranks, while the corporation requires more personnel in its engineering wing.

The development authority has listed 18,823 cases of building regulation violations so far, but action has been taken only in 232 cases till date. Though the BDA authorities are hopeful that an enforcement wing will be formed soon with the recruitment of trained personnel and procurement of state-of-the art equipment, the present enforcement wing has just one officer and four assistants.

“On every occasion, the development authority has to take the help of the BMC eviction squad. Within a month or two, we are going to have a squad of our own,” said a senior BDA official.

BDA vice-chairman Deoranjan Kumar Singh called the situation “institutional deficiency”, as the development body has not been able to meet people’s expectations.

“At present, BDA has 902 employees, of which 550 are peons and 200 are clerks. While there are nine Class I officers, there are 143 Class II officials (including section officers). With the development authority planning to expand its area from 419sqkm to more than 1,000sqkm following a notification by the Odisha government on December 18, 2010, the absence of quality manpower has become a serious problem,” said a source in BDA, adding that the development authority has got 30-40 engineers while its basic requirement is more than 100.

“Not just increase in area, as the zonal development plan has already started taking planning to the micro-level, we need more planners. BDA needs 18 planners, but it is managing with just four,” said a senior planner working with the development authority.

BMC’s story is equally tragic and the skeletal staff strength is affecting its performance at all levels.

A source in the municipal corporation said: “In two engineering divisions, there should be four executive engineers, but there are only two. Similarly, to fit the budget size of more than Rs 410 crore per annum, 13 assistant engineers should be working with the corporation, but we have just six to look after development work. We should have at least 39 junior engineers, but have to manage with 11.”

A senior BMC official, who did not want to be named, said: “Though the civic body had been elevated to a corporation, the staff strength is meagre. It matches the strength of a notified area council. BMC was formed by the Orissa Municipal Corporation Act, 2003, but the sanctioned staff strength is still as per a 1979 state government notification.”

Municipal commissioner Vishal Kumar Dev said: “Without adequate staff the inter-departmental coordination of various work by the public health engineering organisation, works, general administration departments and drainage division is also suffering.”

Another senior officer said: “At present, the enforcement officer is looking after land, licensing and corporation matters.” “Vacant posts include eight head assistants, 22 senior assistants, 10 junior assistants, two community organisers and more than 100 sweepers. Twenty-three posts of tax collectors were abolished from the sanctioned number of 109,” a BMC report added.

The housing and urban development department has already circulated a draft cadre policy to create a dedicated cadre for urban development and it is likely to get cabinet nod by next July.

“Once the cadre is formed, we can ensure more and quality staff strength for all corporations and development authorities,” said a senior urban department official.