Kolkata best among 4 metros in quality of governance: Survey
Kolkata has ranked second among 23 major Indian cities in an annual survey that evaluates the quality of governance in cities, comfortably beating more fancied rivals like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
Kolkata has scored over most of the other major metros in the four parameters, finishing second on empowered and legitimate political representation, third in urban planning & development, sixth in urban capacity and resources and 10th in transparency, accountability & participation.
This is the fifth year that the Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy, a Bengaluru-based non-profit organisation, has released its report on Annual Survey of India’s City-Systems (ASICS).
The study has found that Kolkata’s per capita capital expenditure has increased steadily over the last three years and is currently around Rs 1,546. It is among the nine cities, out of the total 23, which has adhered to budget timelines as mandated by law. It is also among the 12 cities where audited financial statements are available online.
The city also performed well on parameters like credit rating, publishing e-newsletters and implementation of the double-entry accounting system. It has introduced a live e-procurement system and details on schemes and services and audited annual financial statements are available on the web.
Kolkata is also the only city that has not witnessed any municipal commissioner churn in the last five years.
