Sudharshana Mukherjee is used to a busy life. As a television journalist, she planned her day around the news cycle and often had to burn the midnight oil to meet deadlines.
Today, she is no longer a reporter but her schedule is about to get crazy hectic, with back-to-back meetings and discussions with city officials, municipal workers and, of course, citizens.
Mukherjee is among the 70 women that have been voted to the 144-member KMC for a five-year term. This is the highest number of female candidates ever elected to the municipality and together they will take decisions that will impact the future of the 4.6 million that live in the bustling city.
From businesswomen, professionals and home-makers there is a mix of talented women in the municipality today and each one has brought to the job her unique understanding of issues and a work ethic based on integrity and diligence.
All these require meticulous planning, equitable use of funds and, naturally, a constant know-how on what people want.
Personally, two-time councillor Jui Biswas from the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) wants to “lead by example” and put “my Masters in Business Administration (MBA) degree to good use to draw up specific plans for the betterment of the city”. This mother-of-two knows “there is a lot that needs to get done especially in terms of bringing the city’s infrastructure up-to-date” and she has to play her part in the progress.
The female corporators are keen to concentrate on regularising standards of sanitation, drainage and water supply in addition to access to education.
Excerpted from an article that appeared in The Better India
