Chandigarh, June 3 -- It's been over four months since Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Saurabh Joshi assumed office as the Chandigarh mayor but the municipal corporation (MC) is yet to constitute three statutory committees essential for the functioning of the civic body, despite approval from the general house. During the 358th meeting of the general house held in February - the first meeting after Joshi's election on January 29 - an agenda for the constitution of the water supply and sewerage disposal committee, roads committee and house tax assessment committee for the year 2026 was placed before the House and subsequently approved. The proposal was moved in accordance with Section 42(3) of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, as extended to Chandigarh. Despite the passage of the agenda and the lapse of several months since, the three committees have not yet been constituted. The delay has raised questions regarding the functioning of the civic body's committee system, which plays an important role in matters related to water supply and sewerage management, road infrastructure and house tax assessment. In complete contrast, Joshi's predecessor, former mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla had formed the three statutory committees within a month of assuming office in 2025. The committee members remained active all-round the year, convening meetings and framing agendas for the city's development. Besides, she also formed nine sub-committees, including city environment and beautification committee, apni mandi committee, sanitation committee, fire committee, house tax committee, art and culture committees. Each committee comprised nine councillors from across parties. In 2024, the then AAP mayor Kuldeep Kumar Dhalor also formed the committees, but no meeting was ever convened by him due to a lack of appointed chairpersons. The committees were not constituted during the tenure of former BJP mayors Sarabjit Kaur and Anup Gupta in 2022 and 2023 respectively. The committees are considered crucial for examining issues in their respective domainsand making recommendations to the MC. According to experts, their non-constitution could affect scrutiny and decision-making on several important municipal matters. The three statutory committees-- road, house tax assessment, and water supply and sewerage disposal, have financial powers of Rs.25 lakh each while sub-committees have financial power of Rs.15 lakh each. With the MC elections slated for December this year and the model code of conduct expected to be in place by October, Joshi is left with only four months to make amends. When contacted, the mayor said he did not find time to constitute the committees as he was busy with official engagements....