CM Siddaramaiah blamed the BJP for marring Brand Bengaluru's image with a lack of commitment, corruption, and resource mismanagement.
Bangalore city: An aerial view. (iStock)
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday, 7 July, announced a slew of measures for the development of infrastructure of Bengaluru in the 2023-24 budget, and the reactions are mixed on them.
The measures include suburban rail projects, insurance schemes for gig workers, allocation of thousands of crores for a high-density corridor, road white-topping, solid waste management, encroachments removal, repairing of canals, and filling of potholes
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah delivered his budget speech on Friday. (Supplied)
Siddaramaiah did a fair job in his record 14th budget, said experts — including Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) leaders and economists.
However, there was also criticism from economists who pointed out that Bengaluru alone was not Karnataka.
Meanwhile, Siddaramaiah blamed the previous BJP government for marring Brand Bengaluru’s image with a lack of commitment, widespread corruption, and mismanagement of resources.
The Congress government also said approximately ₹12,000 crore is being spent through various schemes such as Amruta Nagarotthana, high-density corridor, road white-topping, solid waste management, encroachment removal and repairs of canals, and filling of potholes for the development of Bengaluru.
The “Brand Bengaluru” theme is centred on the safety and convenience of the residents of Bengaluru city.
It is aimed to address the nine major challenges facing the city: Traffic management, environment, solid waste management, proper utilisation of public places, public health, animal health, people-friendly e-governance, water security, and flood management.
“By addressing these challenges in a planned and scientific manner, we will elevate Bengaluru to international standards,” Siddaramaiah announced.
“The so-called double-engine government failed to implement the Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project, an ambitious project formulated to ease traffic congestion in Bengaluru City,” Siddaramaiah announced in his budget speech on Friday.
“This has just remained a budget announcement for many years,” he noted.
“The total allocation for this project is ₹15,767 crore, out of which ₹3,242 crore is the Central share, ₹5,087 crore is the state’s share, and the loan component (external sources) is ₹7,438 crore,” said the chief minister.
“The Central government has released ₹500 crore to date, and the state government has released ₹660 crore. For the current year, the state government has provided ₹1,000 crore,” he said.
Siddaramaiah’s budget also had something for a new class of the workforce — “gig workers” in the unorganised sector, like those employed as full-time or part-time delivery personnel in ecommerce companies like Swiggy, Zomato, and Amazon.
“In order to provide these gig workers social security, an insurance facility of ₹4 lakh will be provided to each of them,” said the chief minister.
“That will include life insurance of ₹2 lakh and accidental insurance of ₹2 lakh. The entire insurance premium will be borne by the government,” he added.
The chief minister also mentioned a project that would ensure sustainable management of water supply and protection of the natural ecosystem in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits after its completion.
The Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is expected to upgrade 20 sewage treatment plants (STPs) by March 2026
The BWSSB will execute this project using its own funds, said Siddaramaiah, adding that its total cost would be ₹1,411 crore.
A new flyover will be constructed at the cost of ₹263 crore near Baiyyappanahalli in Bengaluru, announced the chief minister.
This is expected to address the current lack of good metro-road connectivity to the Sir M Visveswaraya Terminal constructed by the South Western Railways near Baiyyappanahalli.
This is expected to end the inconvenience that has been caused to lakhs of commuters. It will also stop the severe traffic congestion in the area.
“Approximately 190 km of roads were converted into white-topped roads by our government in 2016-17 and 2017-18, and they are still in very good condition,” said Siddaramaiah during the budget presentation.
“Subsequently, no white topping work was taken up by the previous government. This project will be restarted in 2023-24. Around 100 km of major roads will be developed as white-topped roads at a cost of ₹800 crore,” he said.
“This will prevent the need for repeated repair of roads. In 2023-24, 83 km length of such roads will be developed at a cost of ₹273 crore,” he added.
The Bengaluru Peripheral Ring Road project, which has been lying on the backburner over the past 15 years due to technical issues, has been cleared as the Supreme Court gave consent to it on 25 November, 2021.
The Congress government has vowed to resolve all legal hurdles and make sincere efforts to implement the project expeditiously.
Encroachment of stormwater drains has hindered the smooth flow of stormwater in Bengaluru.
This has led not only to floods but also to mishaps due to water from waterlogged roads entering people’s houses.
Action will now be taken on priority to resolve this issue by vacating the encroachments identified by the Revenue Department.
The Congress government has also prioritised scientific disposal of waste in Bengaluru city.
Legacy waste of 97 lakh tons will be treated through bio-mining and bio-remediation. In the next five years, 256 acres of land will be converted into parks in Bengaluru city, the chief minister announced.
₹3,400 crore has been allocated for the effective disposal of legacy waste, liquid waste management, and controlling the flow of pollutants into rivers and lakes.
The project is expected to prioritise the adoption of modern systems of processing drainage water.
Out of the total allocation, ₹1,250 crore is provided for Bengaluru city and ₹2,150 crore for other urban local bodies.
The Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Corporation Limited (BSWMCL) has been established to collect, treat, and dispose of waste in a scientific and sustainable manner.
₹100 crore is being provided for the effective operation of this corporation.
Namma Metro lines will be expanded from Baiyyappanahalli to Krishnarajapura, Kengeri to Challaghatta, Nagasandra to Madawara, and RV Road to Bommasandra in the current year.
The total addition of new lines by the end of 2024 is expected to be 27 km.
Further, in the next three years, the metro network will be increased from 70 km to 176 km — 2.5 times the present network coverage.
The ongoing work of the airport metro line will be expedited and it will be operationalised by 2026, the chief minister said.
A Technology Innovation Park will be developed on 100 acres of land at Kadugodi in Bengaluru.
The project has been conceived with a focus on developing the semiconductor ecosystem in the state.
This park is expected to provide services in testing, design, innovation, research, and development of semiconductors.
Siddaramaiah announced that it would also house a Technical Research Institute.
To foster athletes and prepare them for international competitions, a regional basketball training centre in Bengaluru and a cycling velodrome in Mysuru will be established at a cost of ₹10 crore each.
A grant of ₹5 crore will be allocated to establish a sports museum in Sri Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru.
Further, ₹10 crore will be provided to establish a well-equipped sports hostel in a public-private partnership model.
With a view to strengthening traffic management and ensuring the safety and security of women in Bengaluru, action will be taken to establish five traffic police stations and six women police stations.
In order to maintain law and order in the city and strengthen existing police stations and offices, a total of 2,454 new posts will be created in two phases.
Action will be taken at a cost of ₹10 crore for the upgradation of police station units of the Crime Investigation Department (CID), Cyber Crime Division (CCD) and Cyber, Economics, and Narcotics (CEN) wing, which play a significant role in the investigation of crimes.
On the lines of Bengaluru Central Jail, STPs will be constructed in seven other central jails at a cost of ₹10 crore.
Watch towers will also be constructed in five central jails of the state at a cost of ₹5 crore.
Besides, ₹5 crore will be provided this year to undertake necessary preparatory works and operationalise the Karnataka Prisons Academy located in Bengaluru.
In order to provide affordable housing to the poor people in Bengaluru city, the chief minister’s 1 lakh housing scheme was accorded approval in 2017-18.
However, the previous government failed to take measures to complete the construction of these houses, and also the selection of beneficiaries under the scheme was not done satisfactorily, said Siddaramaiah in his budget speech.
The Congress government was committed to correcting these lacunae and providing affordable houses to the people of Bengaluru city in the coming years, he added.
The 15th Finance Commission in its final report had recommended state-specific grants of ₹3,000 crore for holistic improvement of water bodies and ₹3,000 crore for the Peripheral Ring Road to decongest Bengaluru traffic.
But the Central government had not released this grant also to the state, said Siddaramaiah.
“Though the Union finance minister has been elected from our state and despite the claims of a double-engine government, the previous government failed in getting these grants from the Central government,” he rued.
Besides all these, a grant of ₹25 crore has been allocated to provide infrastructure facilities to the University of Visvesvaraya College of Engineering (UVCE) in Bengaluru.
The textile technology department in the SKSJTI Engineering College in Bengaluru will be upgraded as a Smart and Technical Textile Centre under the National Technical Textile Mission and PM-Mitra scheme.
A completely automated and centralised blood bank management system will be established at the Bengaluru Medical College and Research Institute at a cost of ₹5 crore.
A 10-month residential coaching programme for IAS/KAS and other competitive exams will be offered to the minority aspirants in Haj Bhavan in Bengaluru, in collaboration with reputed coaching institutions.
For the development of a Gurudwara in Halasuru in Bengaluru, ₹25 crore has been provided. A monthly honorarium will also be provided to the Granthis serving in the Gurudwaras.
“It’s only a city like every other city in Karnataka,” Professor RS Deshpande told South First when reacting to the budget allocations made by Congress.
“Bengaluru gets a fair share of the budget from its municipality to be used for its betterment, instead of seeking thousands of crores from the Karnataka government,” he added.
“If every city starts doing this, how will the state government take care of the overall aggregate development? This is a truncated budget,” said Deshpande, who is currently an honorary visiting professor at the Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC).
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