After five years, civic body’s governing council draws its curtains down
Visakhapatnam: The tenure of the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) governing council officially concluded on March 17 (Tuesday), marking ‘the end’ of a five-year-long chapter in the city’s civic administration.
Back on March 14, 2021, the GVMC elections were held and corporators took oath four days later on March 18.
With the completion of their full term, all elected representatives have now formally stepped down on Tuesday.
However, despite the completion of the council’s tenure, immediate elections could not be conducted due to ongoing academic commitments, including Class 10 and Intermediate examinations.
As a result, beginning from Wednesday, the GVMC will be administered under a Special Officer administration, with District Collector MN Harendhira Prasad appointed as a Special Officer to oversee the civic governance.
Given the current constraints, officials and public representatives anticipate that this arrangement may continue for about six months.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has already instructed public representatives to remain actively engaged with citizens and gear up for the ensuing local body elections.
However, elections will only be scheduled after the completion of the examination period, finalisation of reservation policies and conclusion of the ongoing caste census.
Government sources indicate that these exercises may take another two to three months. With elections across municipal bodies, including GVMC, the polls are expected in the next six months if timelines are met as planned.
Adding another layer of complexity, proposals are under consideration to expand GVMC’s jurisdiction.
This includes the merger of remaining villages in Bheemunipatnam mandal, 72 villages from Anandapuram and Padmanabham mandals and rest of the areas of Pendurthi mandal.
Earlier, both Pendurthi and Bheemunipatnam MLAs Pachakarla Ramesh Babu and Ganta Srinvasa Rao have formally requested the government to approve these mergers. In response to their request, the government has directed the GVMC officials to study its feasibility and submit a detailed report. However, if the report favours expansion, officials caution that elections would face further delay as administrative restructuring needs to be completed before that.
