Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru Development Minister D K Shivakumar stressed Wednesday that the city’s development hinged as much on civic sense among citizens as on government initiatives.
Shivakumar listed garbage dumping, traffic congestion, and poor coordination as the city’s biggest challenges.
The Karnataka deputy chief minister was speaking at an interaction on Bengaluru’s development, organised by the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and the Bangalore Political Action Committee, at Mount Carmel College.
“There are people who dump garbage anywhere and everywhere. What can the government do? Construction debris is being dumped by trucks, and we have instructed officials to take strict action. We want a green and sustainable Bengaluru, but citizens and officials must work in tandem,” Shivakumar said.
Commenting on the standoff between GBA and solid waste management contractors, he said that the garbage mafia is doing everything to derail initiatives for a clean Bengaluru. “They have filed a PIL to stop us from taking steps to clear the garbage issue,” he said.
The Deputy CM also announced that 50 per cent of tickets in the upcoming elections for the five corporations under the Greater Bengaluru Authority will be reserved for women, ensuring greater representation in civic governance.
Explaining the rationale behind GBA, he said rapid urbanisation had doubled Bengaluru’s population from 70 lakh during former CM S M Krishna’s tenure between 1999-2004 to the current 1.4 crore. It could touch 2 crore in the next 10 to 15 years, he said, adding that to decentralise administration, the city was reorganised into five corporations with 368 wards, compared to the earlier 198 wards under the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
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In response to criticism over potholes in the city, he noted that Bengaluru was among the few cities in the country where citizens can directly report them.
On the question of urban infrastructure, he defended the proposed 40-km tunnel road and the 104-km Bengaluru Business Corridor, saying such mega projects are essential to ease traffic, despite opposition. “If Mumbai can take up similar projects, why not Bengaluru?” he asked.