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Chandigarh Municipal Corporation

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Municipal Corporation Chandigarh
Type
Type
History
FoundedMay 24, 1994 (1994-05-24)
Leadership
Saurabh Joshi, BJP
since 29 January 2026[1][2]
Senior Deputy Mayor
Jasmanpreet Singh Babbar, BJP
since 29 January 2026[1]
Deputy Mayor
Suman Sharma, BJP
since 29 January 2026[1]
Amit Kumar, IAS
Structure
Seats45 (35 elected + 1 member of parliament + 9 nominated)
Political groups
Government (18)

Official Opposition (11)

Other Opposition (7)

Nominated (9)

  •   NOM (9)
Length of term
5 years
Elections
Last election
24 December 2021
Next election
December 2026
Meeting place
New Deluxe Building, Sector 17, Chandigarh
Website
chandigarh.gov.in

The Municipal Corporation Chandigarh (MCC), also known as Chandigarh Municipal Corporation, is the civic body that governs the city of Chandigarh, the capital of Punjab and Haryana.[10][11][12][13][1]

History

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The Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh, India was formed within the Union Territory of Chandigarh under the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act in 1976. The corporation was later extended to the union territory, Chandigarh, by the Punjab Municipal Corporation Law (Extension to Chandigarh) Act, 1994 (Act No.45 of 1994), which came into effect on 24 May 1994. Under a provision of Section 47 of the act, M.P. Tyagi was appointed as the first Commissioner of the Corporation w.e.f. on 19 June 1995. Tyagi continued to exercise mayoral powers until 23 December 1994, when the first meeting of the elected body of the Corporation was held. Tyagi was succeeded as Commissioner by S.K. Gathwal on 8 August 1996.[14]

In the Municipal Corporation, BJP candidate Arun Sood defeated Congress' Mukesh Bassi by 21–15 votes for the post of Mayor, while BJP's Davesh Moudgil and SAD's Hardeep Singh defeated Congress' Darshan Garg and Gurbax Rawat for the posts of Sr. Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor, respectively, in the Municipal Corporation's mayoral polls in January 2016.[15]

After the 2016 Chandigarh Municipal Corporation election in January 2017, BJP's Asha Kumari Jaswal was elected as the mayor, BJP's Rajesh Kumar Gupta and Anil Dubey were elected as senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor respectively. In January 2019, Mayor elections, BJP candidate Rajesh Kumar Kalia was elected as the Mayor by defeating the independent candidate Satish Kainth by securing 16 votes out of the total 27 votes.[16]

Ravi Kant Sharma served as Mayor of Chandigarh till 2021[17] upon succeeding Raj Bala Malik.[18]

2021 Chandigarh Municipal Corporation election was held on 24 December 2021. Sarbjit Kaur was elected as the Mayor of the civic body after the elections.

List of mayors

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The mayor is the head of the Municipal Corporation. Of the five-year term of the Municipal Corporation, Office of the Mayor, for the first and fourth years, is reserved for women.[19]

S. No.NameTermParty
1.Kamla Sharma23 December 1996 – 22 December 1997
2.Gian Chand Gupta23 December 1997 – 22 December 1998
3.Kewal Krishan Addiwal23 December 1998 – 22 December 1999[20]
4.Shanta Hit Abhilashi23 December 1999 – 22 December 2000
5.Raj Kumar Goyal23 December 2000 – 21 July 2001
6.Gurcharan Dass (acting)22 July 2001 – 17 August 2001
7.Harjinder Kaur18 August 2001 – 22 December 2001
8.Lalit Joshi1 January 2002 – 31 December 200
9.Subhash Chawla1 January 2003 – 31 December 2003
10.Kamlesh1 January 2004 – 31 December 2004
11.Anu Chatrath1 January 2005 – 31 December 2005
12.Surinder Singh1 January 2006 – 31 December 2006
(7).Harjinder Kaur1 January 2007 – 31 December 2007
13.Pardeep Chhabra1 January 2008 – 31 December 2008
(10).Kamlesh1 January 2009 – 31 December 2009
(11).Anu Chatrath1 January 2010 – 31 December 2010
14.Ravinder Pal Singh1 January 2011 – 31 December 2011
15.Raj Bala Malik1 January 2012 – 31 December 2012
(9).Subhash Chawla1 January 2013 – 31 December 2013
16.Harphool Chander Kalyan1 January 2014 – 5 January 2015
17.Poonam Sharma6 January 2015 – 7 January 2016
18.Arun Sood8 January 2016 – 31 December 2016
19.Asha Kumari Jaswal12 January 2017 – 8 January 2018
20.Davesh Moudgil9 January 2018 – 18 January 2019
21.Rajesh Kumar Kalia19 January 2019 – 9 January 2020
22.Rajbala Malik10 January 2020 – 7 January 2021Bharatiya Janata Party
23.Ravi Kant Sharma8 January 2021 – 7 January 2022
24.Sarabjit Kaur8 January 2022 – 16 January 2023
25.Anup Gupta17 January 2023 – 30 January 2024
26.Manoj Sonkar30 January 2024 – 18 February 2024
27.Kuldeep Kumar20 February 2024 - 30 January 2025Aam Aadmi Party
28.Harpreet Kaur Babla[7]30 January 2025 – 29 January 2026Bharatiya Janata Party
29.Saurabh Joshi[1]29 January 2026 – Incumbent

Composition

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According to the Municipal Corporation Chandigarh's website, the Corporation is composed of the following members:

1 "Members to be directly elected, representing wards."[14] 35
2 "Members with voting rights to be nominated by the Administrator, from amongst the people who are eminent of distinguished in public affairs or those who have special knowledge or practical experience in respect of municipal administration."[14] 10
3 "The Member of the House of the people representing the constituency which comprises wholly or partly, the Municipal Area, with the right to vote. (Member of Parliament from Chandigarh)"[14] 1

Administration

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The commissioner is the apex of the municipal administrative hierarchy that runs its administration. He is a senior government official (usually an I.A.S officer) and is appointed by the Central government. He is the chief executive officer who is responsible for the passing and implementation of the annual municipal corporation budget, its policies and programmes. All personnel of the municipal corporation work under the commissioner's supervision and control.[21]

The current municipal commissioner of the Municipal Corporation Chandigarh is Amit Kumar.[22]

Chandigarh being a city-state, and a Union Territory does not have a legislative assembly of its own, even though it hosts the legislative assemblies of two states Punjab & Haryana, being a common capital of both states. It has its own Municipal Corporation (MCC), which acts as the local governing authority of the City Beautiful (Chandigarh). The MCC is one of the most powerful local authorities in the Republic of India as it serves both as a regional and local authority.

Departments

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Source:[23]

Accounts Branch Engineering Branch Parking Branch
Agenda Branch Establishment Branch Public Health Branch
Architecture Branch Estate Branch Public Relation Branch
B&R Branch Fire & Rescue Services Branch RTI Branch
Booking Branch Horticulture & Electrical Branch Rural Branch
Building Branch IT Branch Solid Waste Management (SWM)
Colony Branch Legal Branch Tax Branch
Complaint & Grievance Branch Licensing Branch Vendor Cell
Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Urban Livelihoods Mission (Day-NULM) Medical Officer of Health (MOH)
Enforcement Branch Monitoring Branch

Composition of MCC House

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Contesting the 2021 Chandigarh Municipal Corporation election for the first time, Aam Aadmi Party won 14 seats in the council of total 35 elected seats. However, the BJP managed to retain the power in the house, following defections and it later became the single largest party in the house.[24] Sitting mayor Ravi Kant Sharma from BJP lost his seat to AAP candidate Damanpreet Singh.[25][26]

Composition of Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (October 2025)
PartySeats
Bharatiya Janata Party18
Aam Aadmi Party11
Indian National Congress6
Nominated 9
Member of Parliament 1

Current members

[edit]

Elected councillors

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Mayor: Saurabh Joshi
Senior Deputy Mayor: Jasmanpreet Singh Babbar
Deputy Mayor: Suman Sharma
Ward No. Councillor Party Remarks
1 Jaswinder Kaur AAP
2 Maheshinder Singh Sidhu BJP
3 Dalip Sharma BJP
4 Suman Sharma BJP Elected as AAP candidate, later defected to BJP
5 Darshana INC
6 Sarabjit Kaur BJP
7 Manoj Sonkar BJP
8 Harjeet Singh BJP
9 Bimala Dubey BJP
10 Harpreet Kaur Babla BJP Elected as INC candidate, later defected to BJP.
11 Anup Gupta BJP
12 Saurabh Joshi BJP
13 Sachin Galav INC
14 Kuljeet Sandhu BJP
15 Ram Chander Yadav AAP
16 Poonam BJP Elected as AAP candidate, defected to BJP after election.[5]
17 Damanpreet Singh AAP
18 Taruna Mehta INC Elected as AAP candidate, defected to INC after the election.[27]
19 Neha Musawat BJP Elected as AAP candidate, defected to BJP after election.[5]
20 Gurcharan Jeet Singh Kala BJP Elected as INC candidate, defected to BJP, then to AAP and then again to BJP after the election.[28][29][5]
21 Jasbir Singh AAP
22 Anju Katyal AAP
23 Prem Lata AAP
24 Jasbir Singh Bunty INC
25 Yogesh Dhingra AAP
26 Kuldeep Kumar AAP
27 Gurbax Rawat BJP Elected as INC candidate, defected to BJP on 27 January 2025.[30]
28 Nirmala Devi INC
29 Manaur AAP
30 Hardeep Singh AAP Elected as SAD candidate, defected to AAP after the election.[31]
31 Lakhbir Singh Billu BJP Elected as AAP candidate, defected to BJP after the election.[4][5]
32 Jasmanpreet Singh Babbar BJP
33 Kanwarjit Rana BJP
34 Gurpeet Singh INC
35 Rajinder Sharma BJP

Nominated councillors

[edit]
Sr. No. Councillor
1 Charanjiv Singh
2 Ajay Dutta
3 Sachin Kumar Lohtiya
4 Haji Mohd. Khurshid Ali
5 Dr Joytsna Wig
6 Shipra Bansal
7 Sat Parkash Aggarwal
8 Kamla Sharma
9 Maj. Gen. M. S. Kandal

Civic utilities

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The prime responsibilities of the civic body are to ensure cleanliness and sanitation in the city, illumination of street lights, maintenance of parks, and sewerage disposal.[32]

Water Supply

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The city has both brick and pipe sewers laid in four phases.[33] In September 2020, the civic body announced that it would upgrade and renew the 50-year-old sewerage system.[33] The pilot project for the 24x7 water supply is expected to begin in Chandigarh in May 2021, which was initially to start in September 2020 and end in March 2022. On 8 April 2021, Chandigarh Smart City Ltd (CSCL) opened the bid by the joint venture firm between SB Engineering and Tap Presstressed Pvt Ltd that quoted a value lower than the reserved price of 162 crores. The CSCL board is yet to take the final decision.[34]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Pundir, Dushyant Singh (29 January 2026). "BJP bags top 3 Chandigarh mayoral posts, Saurabh Joshi is new Mayor". The Tribune. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  2. 1 2 Sharma, Sumit (29 January 2026). "Who Is Saurabh Joshi? BJP Leader Elected As Next Mayor Of Chandigarh". Free Press Journal. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  3. Kumar, Aneesha Sareen (25 December 2025). "2 AAP councillors switch to BJP ahead of mayoral polls in Chandigarh". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  4. 1 2 Rana, Sandeep (11 January 2024). "Another blow to Chandigarh AAP, councillor Lakhbir Singh Billu joins BJP". Tribune India. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Manoj Sonkar resigns as Chandigarh Mayor ahead of SC hearing, 3 AAP councillors join BJP". India TV. 18 February 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  6. "Congress councillor Gurbax Rawat joins BJP ahead of Chandigarh mayoral elections". India TV News. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  7. 1 2 Arya, Avni (30 January 2025). "Who Is Harpreet Kaur Babla? Chandigarh's New Mayor Secures Victory Over INDIA Bloc With Cross-Voting Push". Times Now. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
  8. "Akali Dal's Chandigarh candidate Hardeep Singh who quit party joins AAP, boost for Congress Manish Tewari". The Tribune. 9 May 2024. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
  9. "AAP, Congress seal alliance for Chandigarh mayoral polls". Economic Times. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  10. "History of MCC". Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh. 4 January 2012. Archived from the original on 8 December 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  11. "Chandigarh Municipal Corporation likely to charge for advertising on cinema houses, multiplexes". The Indian Express. 18 November 2015n. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  12. Rohtaki, Hina (4 November 2015). "Chandigarh Municipal Corporation to spruce up heritage site". The Indian Express. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  13. "Chandigarh Municipal Corporation Newly elected mayor rajesh kumar alias kalia January 2019". newsgraph.net. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  14. 1 2 3 4 "Municipal Corporation Chandigarh, Chandigarh Administration, India". mcchandigarh.gov.in. Archived from the original on 14 July 2007. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  15. "BJP-SAD wins all top posts in Chandigarh MC polls". Tribune. 8 January 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  16. "Rajesh Kalia new Mayor of Chandigarh". The Hindu. 18 January 2019. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  17. "The Ragpicker Who Would Be Mayor: Chandigarh's Rajesh Kalia is an inspiration for all". Times Now. 22 January 2019. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  18. Victor, Hillary (10 January 2018). "From clerk's son to Chandigarh mayor: BJP's Davesh Moudgil". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  19. "Chandigarh Mayor Election 2022 on January 8; AAP, BJP in race". The Financial Express. 4 January 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
  20. "Jain men elected Mayor, Dy Mayor". The Tribune. 23 December 1998. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
  21. "Composition of a Municipal Corporation in India". PublishYourArticles.net - Publish Your Articles Now. 19 July 2014. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
  22. "Administrative Structure". Chandigarh Administration. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
  23. "Municipal Corporation Chandigarh Branches". Municipal Corporation Chandigarh - Chandigarh Administration. Retrieved 17 August 2025.
  24. Ghazali, Mohammad; Ghosh, Deepshikha (27 December 2021). "AAP Wins Most Seats In Chandigarh Polls On Debut, BJP Mayor Among Losers". NDTV.com. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  25. "AAP emerges as leading party as Chandigarh MC poll throws up hung house; BJP's sitting mayor loses". The Tribune. 28 December 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  26. "Chandigarh Municipal Polls: AAP Emerges Leading Party; Party's Damanpreet Singh Defeats BJP Mayor". Outlook. 27 December 2021. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  27. "Chandigarh AAP councillor Taruna Mehta joins Congress". Hindustan Times. 28 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  28. "Another Congress councillor joins BJP, changes voting equation in Chandigarh Municipal Corporation". The Indian Express. 9 June 2022. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  29. "BJP councillor Gurcharan Singh Kala joins". Tribune. 13 January 2024. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  30. "Congress councillor Gurbax Rawat joins BJP ahead of Chandigarh mayoral elections". India TV News. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  31. "Akali Dal's Chandigarh candidate Hardeep Singh who quit party joins AAP, boost for Congress' Manish Tewari". Tribune India.
  32. "How Chandigarh's four-pronged strategy is helping the city fight COVID-19 | Citizen Matters". 17 August 2020. Archived from the original on 17 August 2020. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  33. 1 2 Sagar, Munieshwer A (11 September 2020). "Plans afoot to revamp Chandigarh's over 5-decade-old sewerage system". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
  34. Sagar, Munieshwer A (9 April 2021). "Pilot project for 24x7 water supply in Chandigarh set to begin in May". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
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