Former Minister of Agriculture and former mayor of Mollerussa Josep Grau dies

Former Minister of Agriculture and former mayor of Mollerussa Josep Grau has died this Tuesday evening at the age of 80, as confirmed by the city council of the capital of Pla d'Urgell. Born in the same city on November 8, 1945, he was a minister between 1999 and 2003, mayor from 1987 to 1999, and a member of Congress between 1993 and 1994. He also held other positions of responsibility, such as president of the Lleida Provincial Council between the years 1990 and 1999 or president of the Catalan Association of Municipalities and Regions (ACM) between 1996 and 1999. The City Council of Mollerussa, led by mayor Marc Solsona, has "deeply" regretted the passing and thanked Grau for his years of dedication to the municipality.

Josep Grau began his municipal political career in 1983, when he was elected councilor of the City Council of Mollerussa for the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC). Four years later, after the 1987 municipal elections, he assumed the mayoralty, which he revalidated in the 1991 and 1995 elections at the head of the Convergence and Union (CiU) candidacies.

Grau's three terms coincided with a period of transformation for Mollerussa. In 1988, the Pla d'Urgell region was officially created, and the city faced the challenge of consolidating its role as capital and equipping itself with the necessary infrastructure, services, and facilities to assume this territorial role. Grau's terms also coincided with urban, economic, and demographic growth and with the modernization of the urban fabric and public services. During those years, the development of new residential and industrial sectors was promoted, which allowed the city to expand and respond to its growth.