BENGALURU: Predicting that Bengaluru’s population would double over the next 20 to 25 years, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar here on Sunday said the government has decided to invest Rs 1.5 lakh crore to address the city’s infrastructure deficiencies.
At the 40th anniversary of BBUL Jain Vidyalaya of the Shri Mahaveer Jain Education Society and the 25th anniversary of CB Bhandari Jain College, held at Palace Grounds, Shivakumar said the city’s infrastructure must be transformed.
“Everyone here needs personal vehicles for commuting and hardly anyone uses public transport. With a population of 1.4 crore, the city has 1.3 crore vehicles, leading to severe traffic congestion,” observed Shivakumar, also Bengaluru development minister.
After taking the responsibility of Bengaluru, Shivakumar said he has prioritised investment in infrastructure and claimed that despite traffic congestion, no one is willing to leave Bengaluru.
He said Bengaluru is not just a Silicon City, but also a health city and is developing in every sector.
“Bengaluru is an exceptional city with a strong culture and abundant opportunities for quality education. It has a very large human resource base. While California state in the US has 3.5 million engineers, Bengaluru alone has 2.5 million engineers. This is the city’s strength,” he remarked.
Rajya Sabha member Lehar Singh Siroya urged the Jain community students to stay away from social media and focus on rigorous study to progress academically.