CMCs and TMC merger soon

CMCs and TMC merger soon
The State will soon decide whether the seven CMCs and one TMC will come under the Greater Bangalore Authority or BCC
The Times of India

Anew dimension will be added to the city with the government all set to unveil Greater Bangalore. Modalities of whether there should be one corporation (BCC) or two corporations (latter for manning eight local bodies) are still under consideration. The debate over whether the seven City Municipal Councils (CMCs) and one Town Municipal Council (TMC) should be merged with the BCC or a separate umbrella organisation created to bring the local bodies in Bangalore Urban District under that authority is heating up, according to highly placed sources in the State Urban Development Department.

It may be recalled here that the state government in its attempt of a major infrastructure overhaul for Bangalore has mooted the idea of centralising the administration work of the seven CMCs - Bommanahalli, Byatarayanapura, Yelahanka, Dasarahalli, Pattangere, Rajarajeshwari Nagar, K R Puram, and the Kengeri TMC. The fact that the seven CMCs and one TMC today accounts for 45 percent of the going-tobe metropolis cannot be ignored any more.

The growth of Greater Bangalore makes for a fitting case study of sheer opulence and lack of infrastructure. The International Tech Park, Electronic City, super specialty hospitals, world-class educational institutions, hiend apartment complexes, shopping malls, multiplexes and sprawling layouts boasting choicest of bungalows on one hand, and poor civic infrastructure on the other. What were once villages now play host to a world of techies, massive glass facades and a virtual little world. But on the infrastructure front, everything remains the same.

Sources in the department say that this move is touted as one of the major decisions that would put the growth of Bangalore on the right track. The loud thinking doing the rounds in the government has accelerated in the recent past simply because of the growing insufficient infrastructure in the CMC areas. This move will be good for Bangalore as 50 percent of migrants to the city live in these areas and the others have moved here because of sky-rocketing real estate prices in the central parts.

Sources say that work on the modules for the move is being briskly carried out and put on the fast track. It is said that the Chief Minister is keen on this initiative and has closely been following up on the developments. A resolution to this effect will be passed in the assembly. A crucial aspect that needs to be addressed before bringing all the local bodies under one umbrella is the accommodation of the elected representatives in the new regime.
The source further stated that this is a mammoth exercise as it involves, administration, funding (revenue and expenditure), execution and elected representatives. Also, charters, guidelines, rules, regulations have to be taken into consideration while merging the local bodies. However, it is one giant step towards reforming the haphazard growth that Bangalore witnessed within a short span of time.

The major sectors where an infrastructure gap has been perceived and assessed in the CMCs are water and waste-water, storm water drain network, solid waste management, road network, urban transport and environment management.