Bangaloreans' civic awareness abysmal, says children's survey

Bangaloreans' civic awareness abysmal, says children's survey

The Hindu


Bangalore: Only 61 per cent of Bangaloreans know why Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) elections are held. Just 47 per cent of the citizens of the city have voted in the 2001 BMP elections. And of those who did vote, only 50 per cent know who their corporator is.

These are some of the findings of a sample survey conducted by 2,000 student volunteers of the Children's Movement for Civic Awareness (CMCA) across Bangalore, which was released here on Friday.

Children who presented the report concluded that the level of citizen awareness in Bangalore was "abysmally low", particularly among "those who are better-educated".

Commending the children who did the survey, A. Ravindra, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Board, Government of Karnataka, said the "report card" on the citizens of the city was shocking. He suggested that they could take it a step forward by making presentations in their own localities and creating awareness. BJP city unit president B.N. Vijayakumar called the report a "real eye opener'.

Former Mayor P.R. Ramesh underlined the importance of planning and involving all the stakeholders more effectively in governance, particularly because the city's population was expected to touch 1.5 crore in 10 years. He felt that the 500 sq km proposed to be added to the city under Greater Bangalore would need a separate corporation. Emphasising the importance of awareness about one's city, he said BMP had published booklets on the history of Bangalore in English and Kannada and distributed it to 85,000 students in the city.

Actor Ramesh, brand ambassador of CMCA, signed the first "Ripples of Awareness" pledge card. Children who were part of this campaign will be distributing 1,000 such cards.