Neema Bhagat elected as EDMC mayor

BJP councillor from Geeta Colony ward, Neema Bhagat was today elected as the Mayor of East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC).
Soon after her election, she pitched for the unification of three civic bodies of the national capital and made an appeal to the Centre to rescue the ailing EDMC.
Bhagat was elected unopposed in the first sitting of the newly elected councillors who were administered oath by protem chairman of the House Nirmal Jain, who represents Shahdara ward.
BSP councillor from Seelampur, Sakila wore a hizab and took oath in Urdu while BJP councillor Indira Jha (Dilshad Colony) took oath in Maithili and her party colleague Gurjeet Kaur (Bhajanpura) in Punjabi.

Bhagat said that addressing the grim financial condition of the civic body and resolving the problems faced by the sanitation workers, who boycotted the oath ceremony and dumped garbage outside the EDMC headquarters, would her priority.
"I appeal to the Centre to help the EDMC as it is passing through financial crunch. They should provide us funds so that the corporation could function normally. I will try to seek funds from the Centre as per law."

East Delhi has witnessed half a dozen strikes in past three years by the sanitation workers who demanded timely payment of their salaries and other dues.

"I will sit with the leaders of sanitation workers to sort out their demands, including payment of pending salaries. We are with them and try to take a decision with regard to their demands," the new EDMC mayor said.
Bhagat, who was also a councillor in the erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in 2007, said that she supports the demand for unification of three municipal corporations for the benefit of the EDMC.
"South and North corporations are capable (financially) but EDMC is facing problems. If the three corporations are unified EDMC will be benefited," she added.
The Mayor said that the civic body will make efforts to get "Rs 3,970 crore" dues owed to it by the Delhi government.

The House also elected Vipin Bihari Singh as new deputy mayor.
There was a little departure from the tradition as the mayor and the Leader of the House could not give their first speeches as the councillors left the seats to congratulate the newly elected mayor.