Municipal Corporations

About Municipal Corporation in India

The urban local government which works for the development of any Metropolitan City with a population of more than one million is known as the Municipal Corporation in India. The members of the Municipal Corporation are directly elected by the people and are called Councillors.

Who are the members of a Municipal Corporation

The Municipal Corporation consists of a committee which includes a Mayor with Councillors. The Corporations provide necessary community services to the Metropolitan Cities and are formed under the Corporation Act of 1835 of Panchayati Raj system. The Mayor heads the Municipal Corporation. The corporation remains under the charge of Municipal Commissioner. The Executive Officers along with the Mayor and Councillors monitor and implement the programs related to planning the development of the corporation. The number of Councillors also depends upon the area and population of the city. In India, the four metropolitan cities; Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai, have the largest corporations.

Who conducts Municipal Corporation Elections

The elections to the Municipal Corporations are conducted under the guidance, direction, superintendence and control of the State Election Commission. The corporations fall under the State government jurisdiction, therefore there are no uniform provisions for the election of the municipal bodies. In some States, the elections are organised by the state governments, while in some states, the Executive Officers arrange the same.

How are Municipal Corporation Elections conducted?

The members of the Municipal Corporation are elected by the people through direct elections. The elections are held for a particular ward in the city. The electoral roll of a particular ward elects the representative or Councillor for their ward. The electoral roll for each ward is divided in to one or several parts depending upon the area within the ward where the voters of each part reside. This means that the voters included in each part belong to a street or a road or a named area within that ward. The voters from all the parts together form the electoral roll of a particular ward.

A person can contest elections for Municipal Corporation if he/she fulfills the following criteria:

She/he must be a citizen of India
She/he must have attained the age of 21 years
His/her name is registered in the Electoral Roll of a ward
She/he is not earlier disqualified for contesting Municipal Corporation elections.
She/he must not be an employee of any Municipal Corporation in India

There are few seats which are reserved for scheduled tribes, scheduled castes, backward classes and women. Every candidate’s nomination form should have a declaration stating the class, caste, or tribe that she/he belongs to. There should be a declaration that the candidate is a woman, in case the seat is reserved for a women candidate.

The Term of a Municipal Corporation

The office of Municipal Corporation runs for a period of five years since the beginning of its first meeting. It is subject to dissolution under various circumstances:

If the State finds the Corporation lagging in its duties
If the State finds the corporation exceeding or abusing its power
Declaration of the Municipal elections in the State as void, or withdrawal of the entire area of the ward from the municipal operations.

Functions of Municipal Corporation

The Municipal Corporation looks after providing the essential services to the people of that district/area which includes:

Hospitals
Water Supply
Drainage
Market places
Fire Brigades
Roads
Over Bridge
Solid Waste
Street Lightning
Parks
Education
Birth and Death Records in the Area

Roles and Duties of a Councillor

The Councillors under the Municipal Corporations perform the following duties:
To work towards the welfare and interests of the municipality as a whole.
To participate in the council meetings, council committee meetings and meetings of other related bodies.
To participate in developing and evaluating the programs and policies of the municipality
To keep the privately discussed matters in council meetings in confidence.
To get all the information from the chief administrative officer about the operation and administration of the municipality.
To perform any other similar or necessary duties.