Delhi releases Rs 109 cr to MCDs to fight diseases

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday instructed the Urban Development Department to release around Rs 109 crore to the three Municipal Corporations of Delhi to make sure that the civic bodies had funds required to deal with the vector-borne diseases, like dengue and chikungunya.

In a statement released to media, the Chief Minister's Office claimed the amount would be shared between the three MCDs with North MCD getting Rs 57.15 crore, East MCD Rs 28.40 crore and the South MCD Rs 23.57 crore to tackle the diseases. 

The Chief Minister said the fund shortage should not be an excuse for lack of preparation for prevention of vector-borne diseases in Delhi. 

Kejriwal asked the department to tell the MCDs that "maintenance of public health is their mandatory function as defined in the Delhi Municipal Corporations (DMC) Act," and when enough fund was being provided ahead of time there should now be no excuse in effectively dealing with the diseases.

The Delhi government also released Rs 46.88 crore for primary education to MCDs. Of this, the East MCD will get around Rs 22.50 crore, the North MCD Rs 12.50 crore and the South MCD Rs 11.75 crore. IANS