Leader of opposition at the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Raja Iqbal Singh, on Friday accused the Aam Aadmi Party-led MCD of planning to bring in a private agency to replace the employees of the Press and Information department.
“Aam Aadmi Party is going to shut the Press and Information Department of MCD and bring in a private agency. 35 employees will be removed… For this, they will spend Rs 10 crore to polish their image through a private agency,” Singh said during a press conference on Friday.
There is one director, two deputy directors, and 30 employees in the MCD’s Press and Information department. The work of this department is to disseminate policies, achievements, and works of the MCD, so that citizens can receive information related to the corporation.
“This department acts as an important link between the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the citizens. But it is a matter of great shame that these people are planning to hand over the department that has been working for the last 50-60 years to a private agency,” said Singh.
“A social media management company was hired during the BJP’s tenure… Their contract is getting over on February 29, so a tender to hire a new social media management company is being floated. Their job was to handle social media, design graphics, and edit videos… The P&I only manages official press releases and takes pictures of the events,” said MCD sources in a joint statement.