Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala: Highlighting waste management, stray dog menace and flooding as the most urgent civic challenges, BJP’s mayoral candidate for the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, V V Rajesh, on Friday outlined his priorities for the city, saying development would be taken up alongside efforts to address basic problems.

Speaking to IANS, Rajesh said, "To solve the basic problems of the city, especially waste management, we have to correct the poor waste management system. Then there are issues of stray dogs and flooding, which are the main basic problems. After solving these problems, we have to simultaneously focus on developmental activities as well. This is the first time in India, I think, that the Prime Minister is giving assurance to a city that the Government of India is going to monitor or assess the developmental activities of the city..."

His remarks came a day after the BJP decided to field Rajesh, a former district president, as its candidate for the post of Mayor of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, which the party has won for the first time, ending 45 years of Left rule in the civic body.

Woman councillor Asha Nath has been named as the party’s candidate for the post of Deputy Mayor.

The announcement was made by BJP state general secretary S Suresh at a meeting of newly elected BJP councillors of the corporation and district-level party leaders. The decision followed prolonged discussions within the party’s state and district leadership.

Sources said earlier deliberations had centred on retired DGP R Sreelekha as a possible mayoral candidate, but a section of the party opposed her elevation.