BENGALURU: Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru in-charge Minister G Parameshwara is all set to tour all 28 Assembly constituencies in the city starting next week with "concrete solutions to issues". Parameshwara held a three-hour-long meeting with MPs and legislators of Bengaluru to discuss various issues ailing the city, drug menace, splitting BBMP and drafting a new act to replace the existing municipal corporations act for the city. He also took BBMP officials to task over payment of salaries to pourakarmikas. The minister drew flak from BJP's elected representatives who alleged bias in the allocation of development funds. Parameshwara will tour three constituencies per day starting next week.
Even as a three-way split for the BBMP is under consideration, Parameshwara reiterated that there was a need to bring about a new and stringent legislation for BBMP, which is currently following Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act. Speaking to the media after the meeting, Shantinagar MLA N A Harris said, "I have suggested imprisonment of two years for drug addicts and up to 10 years for drug traffickers."
At the meeting, BJP legislators accused the government of favouring constituencies of Congress and JD(S) legislators in development fund allocation.
Highlighting the need for waste-to-energy projects, Parameshwara said a pilot project will be taken up to tackle garbage crisis. Under Nirbhaya scheme, `650 crore will be used to set up 5,000 CCTV cameras. Close to 70 schools of the 150 in BBMP limits will be brought under BBMP's direct administration, he said. Earlier in the day, Chairman of Infosys Foundation Sudha Murthy met Parameshwara to hand over the blueprint of Konappana Agrahara station near Electronics City that the software giant has agreed to fund.