HDMC Officials to Get Petrol Allowance Instead of Car Rentals

HUBBALLI

Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC) aims to reduce vehicle-related costs by providing petrol allowances to officials instead of hiring vehicles annually. HDMC Commissioner's proposal aims to implement a cost-effective solution by adopting the BBMP model for official vehicle usage. Under the new system, eligible officials in group A and B categories would receive petrol allowances instead of being provided with hired vehicles.

If the plan gets a nod in a forthcoming general body meeting, the system is expected to be implemented. The modification would impact roughly 47 officials across different sections and regions of the municipal corporation. HDMC maintains a fleet of 7 vehicles, allocated to the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Superintending Engineer, and other officials, while additionally contracting vehicles on annual rental arrangements. Currently, the annual expenditure on hired vehicles amounts to over Rs 1.4 crore.

The situation became more challenging as the vehicle providing agency expressed its inability to supply vehicles with drivers and discontinued its services from June. The proposed allowance system would enable officials to use their personal vehicles for official duties. The estimated annual expenditure under the new allowance system would be around Rs 90 lakh, resulting in significant savings of around Rs 50 lakh for the corporation. The HDMC's initiative demonstrates a practical approach to resource management and cost optimisation, following successful models implemented in other municipal corporations, said Mohan C, social activist.

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Rudresh Ghali, Commissioner, HDMC, explained that after observing the initiative taken by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), they decided to implement a similar approach in Hubballi-Dharwad. The proposal has been included in the general body meeting's agenda. He further stated that upon receiving approval during the general body meeting, they would execute this plan as a trial and conduct a practical cost assessment.