The Hindu 02.08.2012
ELCIA to resist move to bring Electronics City under BBMP
‘We’ve been managing this estate for almost 20 years and we’ve done a decent job’
On Tuesday, the cash-starved Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara
Palike (BBMP), in an attempt to beef up its coffers, passed a
resolution to include all three stages of Electronics City and the
villages surrounding it under its ambit so that it can extract Rs. 300
crore in taxes from this prime business and industrial area.
A day later, the Electronics City Industries Association (ELCIA) has declared that it will resist the move.
As
per the BBMP council’s proposal, areas such as Shikaripalya,
Thirupalya, Neeladrinagar, Bettadasapura, Konappana Agrahara, Dodda
Togur, Gollahalli, Balaji Extension, Hulimangala, Govinda Shettypalya,
Krishna Reddy Extension, Neo Town, Shanthipura and Veerasandra
Industrial Area will come under the palike’s jurisdiction.
Major hub
The
issue came up at Tuesday council meeting with Yediyur councillor N.R.
Ramesh pitching the idea that Electronics City, which houses around 187
major electronics and IT companies, 26 international educational
institutions, residential apartment complexes and three-star hotels
spread over a total built-up area of close to 3 crore sq. ft, was
benefiting from the infrastructure provided by the BBMP.
With
more malls and apartments coming up, the potential revenue from the
newly added areas for the palike would be almost Rs. 300 crore, he said.
This
sparked off more suggestions to include far-flung areas under the
palike, among which are areas around the Bengaluru International
Airport.
‘Out of the question’
ELCIA’s
contention is that the BBMP is not involved in any activities in the
area. Its chief operating officer (CEO) N.S. Rama told
The Hindu
any proposal other than converting Electronics City into an industrial township was out of the question.
“We
have not received any communication from the BBMP. All that we know is
through the media. But we don’t know what infrastructure the BBMP is
talking about. Even the elevated road was not the BBMP’s contribution.
We have been managing this estate for almost 20 years now and we have
done a decent job,” she said.
Tax payment
Asked
to comment on the allegations of some councillors that the resistance
to come under the BBMP was only to avoid paying the property tax to the
corporation, Ms. Rama said: “We are paying tax to the panchayat.”
She added that ELCIA would soon write to the government expressing its reservations about the proposal.
- BBMP council passed a resolution in this regard on Tuesday
- BBMP is not involved in any activities in the area: ELCIA
