April 23, Bhopal: The Bhopal Municipal Corporation’s budget for the year 2025-26 has not yet been passed. On Tuesday, no agreement could be reached between the President and the Mayor’s team. As a result, the corporation has enough funds left to sustain operations for five more days. If a resolution is not found soon, the offices of the Municipal Corporation may have to shut down.
Due to this dispute, the salaries for March have not been paid to 7,000 employees, and pensions for retired workers have also been withheld. Employees preparing for weddings in their families have been forced to abandon their plans and are making rounds of the corporation offices. Since bills haven’t been approved, contractors have stopped work on house projects and the corporation headquarters since Monday. Vehicle contractors have also warned that they will withdraw their vehicles in two days if the situation persists.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav’s green building inauguration program might also be postponed as the finishing work remains incomplete. A similar situation occurred in 2022, when the state government had to intervene to get the budget passed.
The corporation has only enough funds for five days’ worth of expenses, including electricity bills, employees’ mobile bills, rented vehicles, and fuel (diesel and CNG) for its fleet. As a result, general administrative expenses and payments have stopped.
Mayor Malti Rai is arriving in Bhopal on Wednesday, she has called an emergency meeting of the Mayor’s Council, where a proposal is being considered against the President’s unilateral actions. Council members are urging the government and the ruling party to step in and resolve the issue.
The budget deadlock is also affecting the city’s sanitation services. Garbage collection has been disrupted in several areas, and door-to-door collection services have been impacted. The Swachh Survekshan team is currently in Bhopal, uploading videos and photos to the central server, which could negatively affect the city’s cleanliness ranking.
President Kishan Suryavanshi has stated that he will not sign off on the budget until he is provided with complete information. Meanwhile, Revenue Officer Jitendra Shukla claims that all necessary details have already been included in the budget and that the President is welcome to discuss it. However, without budget approval, all operations have come to a standstill.
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