Deccan Herald 12.07.2013
Chief Minister may consider proposal to bifurcate BBMP
The bifurcation of the Bruhat Bangalore
Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is on the anvil. Following “pressure” from the
Congress MLAs and MLCs from the City, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is
said to have assured the legislators that proposal would definitely be
considered.
Sources in the Congress said Siddaramaiah
had a discussion with the Congress legislators from the City on the
bifurcation of the BBMP during a lunch he hosted for them at his
residence here on Wednesday.
According to a Congress leader, the
decision on bifurcation of the BBMP may be taken six to eight months
ahead of the expiry of the Palike council’s current term. The council’s
term is scheduled to end in March 2015.
It is said that due to
the vast and unwieldy jurisdiction of the BBMP, several civic problems
were not being addressed. The MLAs opined that even the schemes which
were announced for the City were not reaching beneficiaries due to the
BBMP’s 800 sqkm jurisdiction.
instance, the Assembly constituency of Byatarayanapura was spread across
nearly 20 kilometres and, lacked proper development.
The MLAs
and MLCs impressed upon Siddaramaiah that a city like New Delhi, which
is almost the same size of the present day Bangalore, has three
municipal corporations for its functioning.
Loud thinking
Speaking
to Deccan Herald, Home Minister and MLA from Sarvajnanagar in the City
K J George said the bifurcation of BBMP was only a ‘loud thinking’ and
nothing concrete has emerged so far. “The MLAs and MLCs from the City
met the chief minister and we had a general discussion,” he added.
However,
Minister of State for Agriculture and MLA from Byatarayanapura, Krishna
Byregowda said that the chief minister has called for a second round of
talks on the split proposal.
“We (MLAs and MLCs) spoke to him
on the issue and he has agreed to meet us at a later date to discuss the
matter again,” he said.
The proposal to create BBMP was passed during the coalition regime of the JD(S) and the BJP in 2007.
Accordingly,
the jurisdiction of the then Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) from 200
sqkm was increased to 800 sqkm by including seven city municipal
councils, one town municipal council and 110 villages. Subsequently, the
BMP was renamed BBMP.
Incidentally, the idea to reduce the
jurisdiction of the BBMP was discussed even during the final days of the
previous BJP government.