Indian American Pulkit Desai sworn in as New Jersey City mayor

Washington: Pulkit Desai, a US Marine veteran and technology professional, has been sworn in as mayor of Parsippany, New Jersey, becoming the township's first Indian American mayor after a razor-thin election victory.

Desai, a Democrat, won the mayoral race after provisional and vote-by-mail ballots overturned an earlier lead held by Republican incumbent James Barberio. Final counts showed Desai ahead by a narrow margin, with Democrats also winning two council seats and securing control of the township council. The swearing-in took place on Saturday.

In his first interview after taking office, Desai told IANS that his administration would focus on controlling growth while strengthening local services. "Our main priority is to make sure Parsippany is developed in a smart way," he said. "The overcrowding that has happened, we want to stop that, but we want to do smart development for commercial. We want to bring businesses in".

He said schools and public services would remain central to town policy. "If there is anything for the school, for the education board of education, we want to make sure we give them all the funding that's necessary," Desai said. He also pointed to "public infrastructure" and "public safety" as ongoing priorities. (IANS)

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