Gautam Deb is Chairman of BOA for Siliguri civic body

DARJEELING: With the completion of the election process and the lifting of the Model Code of Conduct, the Bengal Government on Thursday nominated a four-member Board of Administrator (BoA) for the SIliguri Municipal Corporation. Former Tourism minister Gautam Deb was appointed the Chairman of the BoA.

A notification issued by the Department of Urban Development and Municipal Affairs, Government of West Bengal, dated May 6, 2021 appointed Gautam Deb; Ranjan Sarkar, Vivek Baid and Alok Chakroborty as members of the Board of Administrator.

Incidentally, with the tenure of the Left board of the Siliguri Municipal Corporation expiring on May 17, 2020, and as elections could not be held owing to the pandemic induced lockdown, a Board of Administrators was appointed in May last year. Initially, a 12-member Board of Administrators, including seven CPI(M), Members Mayor in Council and five TMC Councillors with the sitting Mayor Ashok Bhattacharya had been nominated the Chairman of the BOA. Bhattacharya had rejected the BOA. Later, the BOA had been reconstituted without the TMC members. Bhattacharya along with 6 CPI(M) members had then taken charge.

With the election process having been declared and the MCC coming into force thereby prohibiting certain persons from functioning as Administrators, Surendra Gupta, Principal Secretary, North Bengal Development Department was appointed as the Administrator of the SMC. "I will take charge on Friday at 10:30 am. My priority will be to battle COVID-19. I will hold a meeting on Friday and Saturday. I will be on the road helping people with the Covid situation and will coordinate with the state government." However, Bhattacharya expressed dissatisfaction on the appointment of the new BOA with Deb at the helm of affairs.