Urban Administration

Every district has a jail. The criminals and law breakers are kept here imprisoned. Jails are an important component of a District Collector's power. His duty is to look after the administration of the jail. A Jailor is the highest officer of a jail. He is assisted in his work by the Deputy Jailor. The jails are regularly inspected by the collector. He deals with problems such as grant of superior classes of prisoners, release of prisoners, mercy petitions etc.

Urbanization means the increase in the proportion population of a country who live in the urban areas.

Urban administration is necessary to provide the basic amenities like street lights, garbage collection, water supply, keeping the streets and the markets clean, collecting of house tax and water taxes, etc. They are responsible for cleaning of city drainage system, maintenance of parks, and market. It had made possible for regulating the urban development and local management of civic facilities.

A Municipal Corporation is established in big cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai etc., to solve the local problems of the people staying in these cities. Its main functions are sanitation, records of birth and death, establishment of school and libraries, establishment and maintenance of hospital, water and electricity supply etc.

No, not all the cities have Municipal Corporations; big cities like Pune, have Municipal Corporation while smaller towns like Mainpuri, Sitapur, etc. have a Municipal Council.

The five functions of the Municipalities are as follows:-

1. Supply of adequate drinking water.
2. Providing and maintaining drainage and sewage systems.
3. Maintenance of public street lighting.
4. Construction and maintenance of bus terminals, roads and bridges.
5. Maintenance of birth and death records.

Urban government bodies consist of Municipal Corporation and Municipalities. Municipal Corporations are found in the larger cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai and other places. Municipalities exists in smaller towns and cities.

A ward councillor is directly elected to represent and serve the people in a specific ward. The ward councillor should make sure that the interests of the people in the ward are represented in a proper manner. The ward councillor remains in touch with the key issues in their area, understand the crucial problems and monitor its development. The ward councillor acts as a spokesperson for the people in the ward. They are the direct link between the council and the voters. People can also bring their problems to the ward councillor and he/she should deal with these in a suitable way.

The important functions of Ward Committee are as follows:-

1. Supervision of the overall municipal work.
2. Water and sanitation requirements.
3. Identification of slums and their upgradation.
4. Public health - information dissemination.
5. Environment protection.
6. Supervision of public physical infrastructure like hospitals, schools and roads.

Kolkata Municipal Corporation (formerly Calcutta Municipal Corporation) is the first Municipal Corporation of India. It was established by the British Government in the year 1690 in order to establish local trade, which was favorable in many villages. It became more effective and efficient with the passage of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation act of 1980, which stated the functions of the municipality department.

For providing and running several services, the Municipality needs a lot of money. The Municipal Corporation collects it in diverse ways. A tax is a sum of money that people pay to the government for the services the government supplies. People who own homes have to pay a property tax as well as taxes for water and other services. The larger the house the more the tax, i.e. tax according to quantity. Property levies however form 25-30 percent of the total money that a Municipal Corporation earns. There are also taxes for education. Even taxes like entertainment tax on tickets etc. are also levied. Rich people account for property taxes while wider population pays more general taxes.

Devolution is the transfer of responsibility and accountability from the higher levels of governments (central and state) to the local governments. It involves de jure as well as de facto transfer of responsibilities to the municipal governments along with the transfer of adequate funds to enable municipalities to carry out their functions in a fair and proper manner.

The Municipality and the Municipal Corporation arrange for the disposal of wastes which causes a number of diseases. They construct sewage to drain out dirty water from our cities and villages. They protect the people from epidemics and other diseases like cholera and small pox. They make arrangements for polio vaccination for the children. They maintain dispensaries and hospitals for the sick and also construct public latrines and urinals.

The Ward Committee is a committee that includes the councillor and the a few residents of that ward. It is designed so to be representative of the people residing in that ward. The ward councillors are elected by the people.

Garbage and dirt lying over roads and streets, if remains uncollected attracts flies, rats, dogs, etc. and this harms the people. People get ill from the smell. After a point movement of people and playing of children gets stopped due to the fear of illness. So to save us from diseases, regular cleaning is required.

Councillors are elected by the people and keep their positions only if they are re-elected. Officials are appointed on the merit basis by council management to a specified jobs within the municipal administration, and are like any other employee in a job. Officials possess the knowledge and skills on the technical and specialized aspects of municipal affairs. Councillors who don't have this knowledge have to rely on the reports of officials to help them make decisions. Both the Councillors and officials decide the policies and direction of the municipality. Once the council has reached a decision then officials are expected to carry these out in the most efficient and cost-effective manner.

According to the Indian Constitution "the superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to the Municipalities shall be vested in the State Election Commission".

Plague is a bacterial disease of rodents that can be spread to humans and other animals by infected fleas. Pneumonic plague is the most infectious form because it can spread from person to person in airborne droplets.

In some State the Municipal Chairman is elected by the elected members of the municipality. In some States, he is directly elected by the people. The Municipal Council comprising of 36 ward councillors is headed by a Chairman.

The main reason for the epidemic Plague in Surat was the unhealthy sewerage conditions and the inefficient health infrastructure.

Collector or District Commissioner: He is the highest officer of the district. His main function is to maintain peace, law and order in the district.

District Civil Surgeon or Chief Medical Officer: He supervises all the hospitals and dispensaries of the district. Doctors, compounders and nurses assist the CMO in his work.

District Education Officer: He inspects schools and looks after the education department.

The Executive Engineer: The maintenance of government building and major highways are under public works department. The executive engineer is the head of the department.

The lessons learnt are as follows: - First, strong direction in both administrative and political arenas is essential for good governance. Second, it is feasible to put into practice the administrative strategies to deal with issues of solid waste management and public health if enough thought is put into generating the work ethics as well as public awareness, supported by the proper law enforcement measures.

The epidemic has caused mass panic and alarm in the city, the state, and the whole country. Within days of the outbreak about 300,000 people left Surat, and all work ceased. Many people even left other cities in the state even though there were no positive cases. Trains were not allowed to stop at Surat station. It has cost Surat a huge loss in terms of business.

Public amenities are facilities or benefits continuously offered to general public for their use or enjoyment, with or without charge. Example, the essential services like arrangement of drinking water, light, hospital, education etc.

A district judge is also called the "Metropolitan session judge". He is presiding over a district court in a city which is designated metropolitan area by the State government. A session judge conducts or administers the highest criminal court in a district.

Democracy, which derives from the Greek word "demos", or "people", is defined, basically as government in which the supreme power is in the hands of the people.

A city is a place where people from different regions and states live together. Population of a city varies from twenty thousands and 5 lakh.

The sources of income of the municipalities are very limited while the expenditure is more than the income. So, the State governments give grants to the municipalities.

Parks are necessary in big cities because it provide a proper environment for our health. It helps to protect our localities from pollution and keep ourselves healthy.

The following qualifications are needed to become a member of the municipality:

• The person must be a citizen of India.
• His name should be there in the voters' list.
• His minimum age should be 25 years.
• He should not be a mad, a bankrupt or a criminal.

Every corporation has a Chief Executive Officer. He is not elected by the people, but appointed by the state government. His main function is to implement the decision of the Municipal Corporation. He supervises the work of engineers, doctors and educationists.

The District Collector or District Magistrate is the head of a district. He belongs to the cadre of Indian administration Services (I.A. S.) and is appointed by the State Government.

Garbage was lying here and there in the neighbourhood of Gangabai. People were getting suffocated by the foul smell. Gangabai decided to go to the Ward Councillor with her neighbour. She described this situation to him and he promised to solve this problem immediately. She told the Commissioner that if the problem will not be solved then a number of women from her locality would protest against the corporation.

A municipality, also called a municipal committee or a municipal council, is a local self-government body in smaller towns and cities. It is elected for a term of five years and can also dissolve earlier if it fails to function according to the rules laid down by the state government. The municipal members have meetings at regular intervals. These members elect a chairperson who presides over the meetings. The administrative head of the municipality is called commissioner. Certain permanent officials such as an executive officer, secretary, health officer, sanitary inspectors, municipal engineers, junior engineers and education officers are appointed by the state government or the municipality.