Stop this cash-ual approach, pump money

TIMES CITY CAMPAIGN: FUND CITY MUNICIPAL COUNCILS
Stop this cash-ual approach, pump money
Times of India

T. Dasarahalli: Welcome to the CMC office. It is indicative of the dilapidated condition of the area. The populace of 2,63,636 believed to be largely from the lower socioeconomic strata seems oblivious to the chaos they inhabit.

Fenced by Jalahalli cross, Magadi Road, Nagasandra and Bagalkot, the area screams for discipline. The scene is a study in contrast: the industrial area has more than 50 industries manufacturing the very things wards lack — sanitary ware, tiles, brick and cement. And the biggest problem? “There is no specific plan/time/facility to load and unload garbage,’’ rues a resident.

‘No funds’ is the stock reply of just about anybody at the CMC office for queries raised on roads, garbage, lights, drains. Sample these allocations:

Maintenance of street lights : Rs 32.5 lakh. Drinking water : Rs 1 crore. New BWSSB lines deposit: Rs 15 crore. Garbage : Rs 2.2 crore. Civil works : Rs 6.5 crore.

“I still require Rs 4 crore. We need Rs 60,000 to develop 30 feet of roads. There is no aid from the government. People here have no Cauvery source, they depend only on borewells for water. In summer we arrange water tankers, the water levels go lower than 850 feet,’’ explains an official of Dasarahalli CMC. The only consensus here is that the CMC is not in a position to take on new works. By the way, the largest slums are to be found here, Laggere and Chokkasandra.

MOOLAH MATTERS

Dasarahalli CMC’s current year budget allocation is Rs 10.6 crore; population is 2.6 lakh. The CMC spread over 38 sq km, has 35 wards; major projects are drinking water supply and underground drainage. Rajarajeshwari which is spread over 66 sq km has 31 wards and one lakh population. The budget is Rs 37 crore; major projects are roads, bridges, water supply and drainage.

Don’t compare with BCC

Rajarajeshwarinagar: After overcoming the stench of Vrishabhavathi Valley — the city’s free dumping yard — the hillock area looks opulent. A fund flow of Rs 40 crore, and yet, CMC authorities crib about “insufficient money”. “It’s a huge area but is thinly populated so the revenue is less, no khata is collected. Unauthorised layouts are the menace here,’’ says ward 24 councillor G.H. Ramachandrappa.

Storm water drains have not been desilted for a long time now and officials maintain it is impossible to desilt Vrishabhavathi as it is a permanent problem. Thanks to BEML and IDL layouts, houses with requisite amenities are popular as also the Rajarajeshwarinagar temple and Omkar hills.

A comparison with BCC is a constant refrain. “For a corporation, one ward has many garbage vehicles; here one ward has only one garbage cart. For 66 sq km area, we have one sweeper,’’ explains an official of Rajarajeshwari CMC. People are hopeful...there are plans for six spacious parks, plan to fill potholes. But the CMC says: “We are waiting for funds.”

CELEBSPEAK

Jagdish Raja
Theatre personality Ask Jagdish Raja about the living conditions in his CMC and he says — “are there degrees to hell? The roads here are like moonscapes and we don’t know anything about the drainage. There is no one to come and pick up the garbage. We have hired someone to come and take out garbage everyday.


Ravi Prakash
Chairperson, Karnataka State Vintage Car Rally Association I believe that the government has a step-motherly attitude towards CMCs. Basic amenities like roads, power supply and water are in a bad condition. There are plus points of staying in a CMC like more space and greenery. But if the government takes steps to improve the CMCs, the rush from cities can be shifted to CMCs.