Administrators appointed for 65 ULBs, and Berhampur Municipal Corporation

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government issued a notification for appointment of administrators as the tenure of 65 urban local bodies (ULBs) and Berhampur Municipal Corporation expired on Saturday.

The Housing and Urban Development department appointed Ganjam district collector as the administrator to exercise powers and discharge the duty of Berhampur Municipal Corporation and its Mayor.

The collector will be in the charge during the interval period between the expiry of the term of the office of the corporators of the corporation till the date of the first meeting of the newly elected corporators.

Similarly, the government has appointed several officials as administrators for the 65 ULBs in the state.

The move was made after the State Election Commission (SEC) asked the state government to take the required steps towards their management.

“As per the constitutional mandate, the elected representatives of these bodies cannot function beyond five-year tenure which ends on 29.09.2018,” SEC secretary U N Das said in a letter to Secretary of the housing and urban development department.

The delimitation of wards and reservation of seats of the ULBs, the foremost requirement before the SEC takes up preparation of the electoral roll and conduct of elections, has not yet been received from the government and district magistrates on grounds of legal impediments, Das said in the letter.

“Thus, it appears that the commission is in no position to complete the election or initiate further election process before 29.09.2018 in spite of its best efforts due to no receipt of the ward delimitation and reservation order,” the letter said.