Chandigarh, Oct. 6 -- The need to extend the short tenures of mayors wherever applicable, including Chandigarh's one-year term as it is considered too short for meaningful development, was highlighted at the 118th All India Mayors' Conference in Chandigarh on Monday. Mayors from across the country called for uniformity in tenure, an issue echoed by Punjab governor and UT administrator Gulab Chand Kataria, who also sought uniformity in the manner of electing mayors. The event saw participation of around 40 mayors from 19 states. Chandigarh Mayor Saurabh Joshi, while addressing the gathering, said the variation in tenure-from one to five years-hampers urban governance. "A 12-month term leaves little time for development, as much of it is spent on procedural work and tendering," he said. Kataria, reiterating that the Chandigarh administration has already proposed extending the mayor's one-year term to two-and-a-half years to the Union ministry of home affairs, noted that a five-year tenure might also be too long in some cases. All India Mayors' Council (AIMC) general secretary Ashutosh Varshney (former Aligarh mayor) said there must be uniformity in the tenure of mayors. Rajya Sabha member and AIMC regional head Naveen Jain also called for uniformity in mayoral roles, responsibilities and powers. During his address, Kataria criticised mayors who remain cooped up in their offices, do not conduct field visits, and fail to respond to public calls. "A mayor should wake up at 5 or 6 am, go out into the streets, markets, and parks without taking any officers along to check sanitation, roads, drains, and public problems," he said. Regarding financial constraints, he said, "We curtailed expenditure. Stop obliging people. There are employees hired with no record of their work. There are gunmen unnecessarily deployed," he highlighted. While welcoming former two-time Chandigarh MP Kirron Kher, Kataria mistakenly referred to her as a former Rajya Sabha member. Kher, seated near the stage, quickly corrected him: "Lok Sabha MP, not Rajya Sabha." Kataria responded in a lighter vein, "Aapko bana den Rajya Sabha ka MP (Should we make you a Rajya Sabha MP?)," drawing laughter....