After 10 long years, the trifurcated Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) once again merged into a single entity on Sunday, as IAS officers Ashwani Kumar and Gyanesh Bharti assumed charge as the new civic body's special officer and commissioner, respectively. Making the unified MCD financially stable will be among the key challenges before Kumar and Bharti.

After assuming the charge on Sunday, Kumar told The Pioneer that  they would make sure that the MCD gets the appropriate funds from both the State Government and the Central Government as cited in the constitution.

“Our top priority will be the sanitation work in the national capital, to make the city clean. We will ensure that people of the city will get a hygienic environment to live in,” he said. Kumar said that he would discuss with officials of MCD to improve its financial health. “The state government has recently released some money to the civic body, he added.

Kumar's appointment as the special officer of the unified MCD is considered significant as he is expected to play a vital role in the functioning of the unified municipal corporation, months before the civic elections.

While informing about the plan to make the corporation work in a more effective and environment friendly way, he said that they will make the MCD paperless, in order to save the trees and bring digitalisation to the civic body.

“The Civic body will speed up the work at Ghazipur landfill area to avoid any further fire incidents at the place. The further steps for the betterment of the city will be discussed in a meeting with the officials,” he added.

A day before taking the charge as the SO of the MCD, Ashwani Kumar along with the Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti and Chief Secretary, Government of NCT Delhi, Naresh Kumar visited the Ghazipur landfill site which has been in the headlines for the past few months and took the stock of the situation.

Meanwhile, in its first order after assuming the charge of MCD commissioner,  Bharti made it clear that erstwhile Central Establishment Department (SDMC) shall be the nodal Central Establishment Department of unified MCD. Similarly, the erstwhile Office of CA-cum-FA and the Accounts Department (HQ), SDMC shall be nodal Finance/Accounts Department of unified MCD.

On Sunday, MCD Commissioner welcomed Kumar and introduced officers to him. He also briefed him about the working of the corporation and also briefed him about challenges being faced by the civic body. Senior officials from various departments of the MCD, who were present on the occasion, also greeted both.

Bharti, was the commissioner of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation prior to this assignment, and he was the senior-most among Delhi's erstwhile three municipal commissioners said that his priority will be to provide the best municipal services delivered to the people of Delhi in a transparent manner.

On May 20, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs appointed the Special Officer and Commissioner of the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi. The Ministry of Home Affairs on Friday appointed IAS officer Ashwini Kumar as the Special Officer and Commissioner of the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

“The planned unification of the MCDs’ first administrative step would be to nullify their boundaries. “Unlike the MCD trifurcation in which fresh maps had to be drawn, now one has to just declare that it all comes under one corporation," said Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, leader of the opposition of Delhi Assembly.