Punjab Newsline, Shimla-
PWD Minister Vikramaditya Singh today here informed that the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has approved a grant of Rs. 47.37 crore for setting up Municipal Shared Service Centres (MSSCs) in Himachal Pradesh. He said this approval was the result of the initiative and consistent efforts of the state government.
He said that these centres would help overcome major challenges faced by Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), such as shortage of manpower, limited financial resources, and lack of technical support. He said that the state government was working to strengthen urban governance, promote digital service delivery and ensure efficient municipal administration to the people of the state. For this purpose, 15 MSSCs would be established to serve 74 ULBs under the recommendations of the 15th Finance Commission.
The Minister said that these MSSCs would act as one-stop facilitation hubs, and offer citizens easy, transparent and uniform access to various municipal services such as issuing birth and death certificates, trade licenses, pet registrations, property tax payments, garbage bill collection and grievance redressal similar to the functioning of Passport Seva Kendras.
He said that in addition, the centres would also serve as centralized units for accounting, payroll management, and vendor payments for the members of ULBs. They would further provide doorstep services like tax and bill collection in smaller towns, ensuring convenience and efficiency for the public.
The Minister said that the centre would release the funds in two tranches and 50 percent fund would be released at the time of sanction and the remaining on operationalization. The first installment of Rs. 23.68 crore had already been released which was a significant step toward strengthening the institutional and operational capacity of these centres.
Vikramaditya Singh said that to ensure inclusive implementation and effective outreach, Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) would play an active role in delivering municipal services at the ward level, and it would generate awareness and facilitate citizen participation.
The PWD Minister said that the initiative highlights the state government's commitment to strengthen ULBs and promote participatory, efficient and sustainable urban governance in the state in line with the vision of “Swachh Shehar, Samridh Shehar.”