Kochi Mayor promises corruption-free governance, to hold public hearings

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No files volition beryllium held up for much than 7 days, and not much than 15 days successful cases wherever the Mayor’s engagement successful decision-making is required, Kochi Mayor V.K. Minimol has said.

She was responding to questions astir bureaucratic and governmental corruption that had allegedly plagued the Kochi Corporation implicit the years during a ‘meet-the-press’ organised successful Kochi connected Monday (December 29, 2025).

She further stated that the Mayor request not needfully beryllium informed of each lawsuit of corruption unless the substance was brought to her announcement done a complaint. A monitoring strategy to cheque corruption, implicit with nationalist hearings attended by the Mayor and Deputy Mayor, would beryllium introduced. The frequence of these hearings was yet to beryllium decided, she said.

“Since governance is meant for the public, the governing people has the work to perceive to the radical and the work to code their grievances. As some of america (Mayor and Deputy Mayor) are caller to these posts, we whitethorn request immoderate clip to survey matters. Nevertheless, files volition not beryllium held up for much than 7 days unless the determination requires the Mayor’s involvement, successful which lawsuit it volition not transcend 15 days,” Ms. Minimol said.

When asked however she planned to money improvement projects since the word of the Cochin Smart Mission Limited (CSML), which had financed galore projects, was acceptable to expire, she acknowledged that the Kochi Corporation, similar different Corporations and municipalities, faced fiscal constraints. She noted that the CSML projects had been completed, and present improvement projects for the adjacent 15-20 years needed to beryllium designed. A peculiar thrust would beryllium conducted to cod taxation dues without overburdening citizens, ensuring the Corporation’s fiscal stability.

Ms. Minimol said the conception of part funds, which were unsocial to Kochi Corporation and discontinued astatine the inaugural of the erstwhile Mayor M. Anilkumar, would not beryllium revived. Funds of up to ₹1 crore were antecedently assigned to divisions careless of their size, which, she felt, was inadvisable and prone to corruption. Future projects would beryllium executed utilizing Plan funds oregon the wide fund, with strict fiscal discipline.

Old office

She added that discussions astir the destiny of the Corporation’s aged bureau were premature, arsenic the caller bureau had not yet go afloat operational. Currently, lone the assembly hallway and the chambers of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor had been shifted there, portion the engineering and gross departments, on with the Janaseva Kendra, continued to run from the aged office. “We volition perceive to people’s opinions astir however champion to usage the aged bureau erstwhile the clip comes,” she said.

Ms. Minimol said that vacating the station aft two-and-a-half years would not disrupt improvement projects, arsenic the continuity of the Mayor’s bureau ensured advancement contempt changes successful leadership. “We volition program projects for the adjacent 5 years and beyond, wherever necessary,” she said.

She concluded the meet-the-press with a petition that visitors contiguous her with books alternatively than bouquets oregon mementos.

Published - December 29, 2025 05:13 p.m. IST

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