New Delhi: Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Monday began the process of finalising its budget estimates for 2026–27, even as Leader of Opposition Ankush Narang mounted a sharp attack, branding the BJP-led civic body’s proposed budget as “hawa-hawai” (hollow) and accusing it of lacking vision, execution and accountability. Addressing the House, Narang said the budget was merely “cosmetic” and existed only on paper, with no significant work visible in sanitation, waste management, education, health, air pollution control or park upkeep. He alleged that contractual staff, including multi-tasking employees (MTS) and sanitation workers, had been ignored, with no provision for their regularisation.
He accused the BJP of merely renaming dispensaries as “Arogya Mandirs” while hospitals remained in poor condition. “There are 500 doctor posts and 1,500 nurse posts lying vacant, delaying patient care. The budget presented by the standing committee chairperson has no plan to fill these posts or upgrade the infrastructure of major hospitals, some of which remain underutilised due to lack of resources,” Narang said. Calling the promises made to MTS and sanitation workers “jumlas”, he pointed out that “not a single rupee” had been earmarked for MTS employees. Citing last year’s 33-day agitation by MTS staff, sanitation workers, doctors and nurses, he said they were forced to celebrate Diwali on the streets while demanding equal pay and regularisation. “There is money for events and publicity, but not Rs 42 crore for MTS staff or Rs 40 crore for their regularisation,” he said. Narang added that BJP’s claim of regularising 1,336 employees was misleading as they were still without proper pay scales, pensions or service security. He also flagged the drowning of a six-year-old at the Pitampura Community Centre swimming pool in June 2025, saying the budget had made no provision for lifeguards, CCTV cameras, emergency systems or safety audits even as funds were allocated for publicity. Highlighting figures, he noted that the revised budget estimates for 2025–26 stood at Rs 1,48,393 lakh, while the proposed estimates for 2026–27 were Rs 85,847 lakh — a drop of 42%. “Where this money went must be accounted for,” he said. He further alleged that MCD’s increased income was achieved by burdening citizens through property tax, penalties and pressure on small traders, even as Rs 12,000 crore owed by govt departments remained unrecovered.
