Back to Ahmedabad, the city which saw key reforms under his watch, Keshav Varma has new task Update with guwahati assam

by Guwahati_City


His three-year tenure as the Municipal Commissioner in the 1990s witnessed key projects that got Ahmedabad the label of “mega city”.

In 2018, Keshav Varma, 72, the 1976 batch Gujarat cadre IAS officer, returned to the city with a task — chairman of the Sabarmati River Front Development Corporation Ltd (SRFDCL), the special purpose vehicle that Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) created in 1997 when he was its Managing Director.

When he returned to Gujarat after a 16-year stint in the World Bank, he had one foot in his birthplace, Lucknow, as advisor to Uttar Pradesh government on its urban agenda. He also chairs the smart cities committee in Jammu and Kashmir and was recently made chairman of the centre’s High-Level Committee on Urban Planning.

Credited for the turnaround in Ahmedabad when he was the municipal commissioner from 1994 to 1997, Varma had protested against the fee imposed on the new footover bridge over the Sabarmati river which Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened on August 27.

This seemed like a role reversal as Varma as municipal commissioner had proposed fees and taxes, and ruling BJP that had won the AMC and Gujarat assembly elections with a majority for the first time, always resisted.

This time, the BJP that is still in power, is in favour of a fee to use a foot over bridge as it did not want to be seen as indulging in “revdi culture”, as the standing committee chairman Hitesh Barot told The Indian Express.

Born on January 4,1950 in Lucknow, Varma joined the World Bank as Sector Director of East Asia Urban Development and Disaster Management in 1997, some major works he led in the 16 years being the reconstruction and recovery in Aceh, Sichuan and Myanmar in response to major natural disasters.

He also led World Bank’s multi-billion dollar urban projects in China and countries of East Asia.

“It is the job I loved the most. I would call it my karmbhumi and the love and affection I have received from city residents is even more than what I recall from my 16 years at the World Bank. The way you are connected to people of your country and city, the satisfaction you get when you can see the immediate results of your work is what I missed at World Bank,” Varma told The Indian Express on his stint as the Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner.

The seeds of the mega city that Ahmedabad is today, were sown in those years 1994-97 coinciding with the 74th amendment to the constitution that came as a game changer, making way for compulsory elections every five years, reservations (including 33 per cent for women) and financial independence of all local self government bodies.

From a civic body suffering financial losses in 1994, the corporation saw its first elections after the amendment in 1995 and went on to reform the tax structure, do public private partnerships for quality basic urban services, and raised money from the market, all under Varma’s leadership with a co-operative elected wing, making AMC a model for other cities.

A stickler, Varma recalls how he drove on the newly built roads with a glass full of water in the car for inspection, and if the water spilt, five per cent would be deducted from the contractors’ fee. For a city not used to a proactive government, Varma faced criticism for several firsts including lateral hiring of MBAs, CAs, engineers, into the municipal system.

It was in his time that city-based urban planner and architect Bimal Patel’s HCP Design, Planning and Management Pvt Ltd (HCPDPMPL), was awarded the CG Road redevelopment project, one of the first big ticket capital projects. HCP has since been engaged with the AMC building the Sabarmati Riverfront and now its civic centres.

During his tenure, the AMC received an AA (SO) credit rating, and issued the “Ahmedabad City Bond” in 1997, the first municipal bond issued in South Asia without central or state government guarantees, and raise finances from the open market by Non Convertible Debentures of Rs 100 crore by the end of the 90s, which helped the corporation tide over the losses it was to face by the abolition of octroi duty.

As advisor to the Yogi Adityanath goverment, he launched the Rs 200 crore bonds for Lucknow Municipal Corporation in 2020 which was the fifth in the country.

Some of the major capital projects that got the city the label of a “mega city” were also executed in his time, like the redesigning the CG road which was Ahmedabad’s Central Business District (CBD), the expansion of three bridges on Sabarmati River and recognising the heritage value of old Ahmedabad and launching the first heritage walk of the state.

The property tax system also saw reforms from a rate based structure to a carpet area based structure which raised revenues and helped plug loopholes. As Municipal Commissioner Ahmedabad, Varma brought in experts as partners for building infrastructure and establishing systems .

He also reformed the rules for business licenses, land use, and transparency in city operations that transformed Ahmedabad into the most pro-business, investment friendly city.

Before he joined as Rural Development Commissioner and District Magistrate, Junagadh in 1987 , Varma was MD of UP State Road transport corporation till 1987, and before that he was chief executive of the Uttar Pradesh Cooperative Dairy Federation, Lucknow where he implemented ‘Operation I and II’ – a World Bank supported programme for dairy development under the late Dr V Kurien.

“Have you seen the CG Road which has not damaged till today. He had a command over contactors who were scared of him. He would go on road inspections in the eary morning in an open jeep,” former Congress corporator Surendra Baxi said.

However, more than the infrastructural projects, what people are reminded of is the sense of pride and ownership that developed among residents.

“Some very tough decisions were implemented during Varma’s time. Be it action against recalcitrant staff or against encroachment. But during his time even the opposition was very supportive. For instance, the Ahmedabad Bond initiative that could pass despite facing bottlenecks and opposition due to support from the political wing,” said one of the former AMC officials.

“We never acted under duress. We had respect for everyone, not limited to any party. We also played a lot of cricket together and a lot of outings together as I believe that administration should not become a boring affair but should be fun,” Varma added.

A passionate conservationist and conceived and mobilised a broad coalition of partners in the World Bank for conservation of tigers and snow leopards in the wild with the ‘Global Tiger Initiative’ covers 20 range countries.

Varma is also an alumni of the Harvard Business School, and part of important think tanks in urban policy and is well networked with important universities such as Harvard, MIT, Clemson, Duke, where he teaches urban practice and transformational leadership. He is also the Founding President of the International City Managers Association of India-the US based association of professional city and county managers and other employees who serve local governments.



This News Present You By Guwahatiassam.info With Out any changes as it Publish on Original Source.

Like Us to Read This Type of News

  • Read More Relevant on ASSAM NEWS | GUWAHATI NEWS | NORTHEAST OF INDIA | TRIPURA | SIKKIM | TOURIST PLACES OF NORTHEAST | NAGALAND | MIZORAM | MEGHALAYA | MANIPUR | ARUNACHAL PRADESH | TOURIST PLACES OF ASSAM

    Related Articles

    سایت شرط بندی معتبر ایرانی

    سایت های پیش بینی ایرانی

    شرط کده

    shartwin

    pinbahis

    yekbet

    بهترین سایت های پیش بینی

    شرط برو

    جسوس بت

    سایت های پوکر آنلاین

    ایران بت

    انجمن پیش بینی ایران

    romabet

    pinbahis

    maltcasino

    asyabahis

    sekabet

    maltbahis

    1xbet

    pinbahis

    superbahis

    betboo

    pulibet

    betting sites of tanzania

    parimatch

    betboro

    1xbet

    melbet

    takbet

    مل بت