5 things that every citizen of Vizag should know about GVMC

GVMC or the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation is the primary civic body that governs the city of Visakhapatnam. As historic as the city of Visakhapatnam is, its civic body also has a long and proud history. Not just that, over the years, GVMC has not only strived to develop the city and take it forward, but it also has been keen on taking action on the public’s complaints. GVMC has frequently sought the public’s opinion on major proposals to ensure that the public is always on board with their works. And as citizens of Vizag, there are certain things for everyone to know about GVMC.

Led by Commissioner G Srijana IAS, GVMC has undertaken so many development works in the city, turning Visakhapatnam into a tourism and commercial hub in South India.

Here are some things to know about Vizag’s municipal body, GVMC:

#1 The History of GVMC

Though Visakhapatnam was established as a municipality as early as 1858, it was only till 1979 that the city became a municipal corporation. Seeing the growth of the city and its neighbouring areas, the Government of Andhra Pradesh created the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) in 2005. This was achieved by incorporating the Anakapalle and Bheemili municipalities. GVMC was the first greater municipal corporation in Andhra Pradesh, even before Hyderabad.

#2 Governance

GVMC is divided into 8 zones, with each zone being overseen by a zonal commissioner. These 8 zones are Madhurawada, Asilmetta, Suryabagh, Gnanapuram, Gajuwaka, Vepuganta, Bheemili and Anakapalle. Furthermore, the GVMC consists of 98 wards, which were increased from 81 wards back in January 2021. Each ward is represented by a corporator from a particular political party. In the last GVMC elections which happened this year in March 2021, YSRCP won a majority of 58 wards while TDP got 30 wards.

#3 Swachh Survekshan

Cleanliness in the city has always been a primary agenda for GVMC. With the inception of Swachh Survekshan rankings, the incentive only got higher. It was a matter of pride for GVMC and the whole city when Vizag was declared as the third cleanest city in the 2017 rankings. Ever since then, GVMC has been striving to claim the top spot on the Swachh Survekshan rankings, by starting initiatives like the door-to-door collection of segregated waste, the ban on usage of plastic in the city and issuing dry days.

#4 Important people in the GVMC

As most people know, the GVMC commissioner is the person who oversees and directs all the operations of the body. Currently, G Srijana IAS is the GVMC commissioner. Much like any other major city, Visakhapatnam also has a mayor who represents the city and presides at city planning meetings. As of now, Golagani Hari Venkata Kumari (YSRCP) is the mayor of Visakhapatnam while Jiyyani Sridhar (YSRCP) is the Deputy Mayor. These positions are elected by the GVMC general body.

#5 GVMC Grievance Redressal System

For any grievances of the public of Vizag, GVMC has established this system called the Grievance Redressal System which records all your grievances and lets you track their progress as those grievances are resolved. GVMC also keeps a mobile app on which citizens can register their grievances and track them effectively. All this is part of the GVMC’s motive to ensure the highest levels of public satisfaction.