A hopeless situation

A hopeless situation
Deccan Herald

Can Bangaloreans hope for better roads in the near future? When will the civic amenities improve? Who is listening to citizens’ grievances?

All these may remain mere questions for years to come, if one goes by the reply of the First Citizen of the City.
Mayor P R Ramesh, after visiting the rain-ravaged areas, said: “How can the Bangalore Mahangara Palike improve infrastructure when it has meagre funds? Our annual budget is Rs 1,400 crore while we need not less than Rs 3,000 crore to implement pending plans.”

The Mayor said the BMP’s plans to upgrade four primary drains by spending about Rs 500 crore had just remained at the planning stage.

Two months ago Rs 10 crore was sought to improve storm-water drains and the money was yet to be sanctioned by the government, he added.

“There is enormous procedural delay in attending to the files and sanctioning of funds in BMP itself. The population of the City is growing. Without understanding the topography, structures have been put up. “

“The roads have to be improved and drains have to be upgraded. But we have no money. Even the BDA has to be blamed,” Mr Ramesh said.

He said the government must set up a ‘constitutionally’ approved committee to improve co-ordination among civic agencies so that the civic amenities could be improved.