How Karnataka CM is murdering Bangalore
Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah completed two years in office and Bangaloreans seem to have ignored this fact for two reasons. Firstly, whenever the Congress assumes power in Karnataka, the government accords top priority to improve the infrastructure of the knowledge capital of the nation to attract more investment, but for Siddaramaiah, Bangalore did not matter much. Secondly, his focus for the first two years was clearly rural Karnataka! In the last two years, Bangaloreans did not have much to rejoice and going by their experience so far, they cannot expect much from the Congress government.
If one looks at the self-proclaimed achievements of the Congress government in Karnataka in the last two years - the emphasis has been on rural development, ensuring social justice, irrigation projects, and various welfare schemes - Bangalore figures somewhere in the bottom half! Was it a deliberate attempt by the Congress to ignore Bangalore just because the BJP was in power in the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) till 2015? Did the Congress plan to start afresh once the BJP's reign came to an end in Bangalore?
When the Congress came to power, every Bangalorean expected the party to appoint a minister for Bangalore, plan infrastructure development from a long-term perspective and execute the same in a time bound manner. But Siddaramaiah allowed the problem to precipitate and now when world renowned brands and MNC firms are threatening to relocate from Bangalore to other states that are offering better infrastructure, the chief minister has suddenly realised the importance of the city.
But the effect of the late realisation and approach is cosmetic. Siddaramaiah is embarking on "city tours" to study the city administration and the problems. In the process, his long convoys are adding to the chaos on the roads, holding up traffic for hours. The peak hour traffic in Bangalore is agonisingly slow, at six kmph. Siddaramaiah need not undertake a tour of the city to understand the problems. He can realise what's happening by just watching TV - traffic jams, chaos on the roads, garbage lying on the roads, uneven pedestrian paths and roads - the complaints of people continue to mount.
To begin with, the state government is yet to find a solution to safely dispose of garbage generated by the city; narrow roads have reduced the vehicular speed; acute lack of adequate parking space in central business districts has led to the clogging of roads; with the onset of the monsoon, flooding of roads and low-lying areas will become a common feature; work on Namma Metro is behind schedule; expressway projects and signal-free corridors are still on the drawing board.
Bangalore is home to urban planners, civic experts and engineers, who have the capabilities to provide plans for city. The CM needs to bring these experts together to speed up the pace of infrastructure development. When SM Krishna was the CM of Karnataka (1998-2003), he had roped in the best brains to set up the Bangalore Agenda Task Force (BATF). Some BATF members are now pursuing the same objectives but from a private plank. One or two are still associated with the government at various levels but their experience has not been very satisfactory.
Unless there is an attitudinal transformation among the leaders of the Congress in Karnataka, Bangalore will continue to suffer. The leaders have even failed to connect with the population, particularly youths in the city. It was not a surprise that BJP could inspire them to vote for it during the parliamentary polls by wooing the youth in their own language. Siddaramaiah needs to take Bangalore more seriously. Otherwise, the flight of MNC capital from Bangalore is at risk.