An argument with a corporator in a WhatsApp group led to the change in portfolio of an engineer of Surat Municipal Company (SMC) inside two days. Sawant Patel, who was earlier taking care of main civic works akin to roads, gentle, drainage and so forth, has now been assigned the accountability of coordinating the MP-MLA assembly, “which occurs as soon as in a month.”
Moreover, on the order of Surat Metropolis Mayor Daxesh Mawani, Patel has been served a show-cause discover for his “blunt reply” on the official WhatsApp group of Varachha East zone.
On Sunday, municipal corporator of Ward quantity 17, Swati Kayda, uploaded pictures of an overflowing drainage line in a housing society within the group. She purportedly requested municipal officers to tell her if they can not do the work correctly. In reply, Patel stated his workers was doing their work correctly, including such false allegations couldn’t be tolerated. He additionally stated that if the corporator thought that SMC officers weren’t doing their work, they need to be transferred or suspended.
The WhatsApp chats went viral on social media and amongst folks related to SMC on Monday, angering Mayor Mawani, stated sources. Within the show-cause discover issued Tuesday, head of Varachha zone has requested Patel to reply in 10 days. Speaking to The Indian Categorical, Mawani stated, “We’ve got instructed the zonal head of Varachha to challenge show-cause discover to the engineer, search his reply, and alter his portfolio of labor. The WhatsApp group has been made for pleasant relations between elected leaders and administrative officers. Such a reply can’t be entertained, which is why we’ve got ordered strict motion in opposition to him.”
Engineer Patel stated, “I used to be posted in Varachha zone 4 months in the past. Earlier, I used to be working within the head workplace of the drainage division. We’re placing in all potential efforts to type out the problems of the general public. My coronary heart broke over allegations that work was not being finished within the zone. So, I wrote it bluntly.”
Confirming the receipt of show-cause discover and alter in portfolio, he stated, “I’ve been made an officer for the coordination assembly of MP-MLA, which occurs as soon as in a month.”
On the drainage challenge that sparked the row, Patel stated, “On checking the realm the place drainage water overflows, I discovered that the jurisdiction lies with one other engineer. The world doesn’t fall inside my purview of labor.”
Notably, all of the eight zones of the SMC have completely different WhatsApp teams with elected corporators, zone officers, political leaders, together with mayor and deputy mayor, and standing committee chairman as their members.
The teams have been created a couple of years in the past to make sure zonal officers pay attention to the general public points shared by the municipal corporators within the group.
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