BELAGAVI: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced an allocation of Rs 6,000 crore for the redevelopment of roads under the Public Works Department, as well as the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department. Additionally, he said that a special package will be announced to improve Bengaluru’s roads.
In his response to an adjournment motion raised by a BJP member in the Assembly questioning the government spending on development projects, Siddaramaiah said that Rs 4,000 crore will be allocated under a separate head of account (Appendix E) in the Public Works Department, while Rs 2,000 crore will be earmarked for the development of rural roads. These funds would be released before March next year, he said.
When the Opposition sought a clarification on the funding for Bengaluru’s roads, the CM explained that he has already discussed the matter with DyCM DK Shivakumar, who is also the Bengaluru Development minister.
Siddaramaiah further assured the House that the details of the funding would be disclosed soon.
Rejecting the Opposition’s claims of economic mismanagement and development stagnating in Karnataka, Siddaramaiah emphasised that the state’s capital expenditure was higher than that of neighbouring states. Despite acknowledging funding challenges, he pointed out that the 15th Finance Commission had unjustly withheld Rs 11,495 crore in special grants. He also mentioned that the Centre had failed to fund critical projects, such as the redevelopment of lakes and the construction of the Peripheral Ring Road in Bengaluru.
Further elaborating on the state’s financial status, the CM noted that hius government has allocated Rs 88,867 crore in the budgets for 2023-24 and 2024-25, with approximately Rs 64,000 crore already spent to implement the five guarantees.
Criticising the previous BJP government, Siddaramaiah accused them of approving projects worth Rs 2.09 lakh crore without making budgetary provisions, leaving unpaid bills amounting to Rs 29,006 crore. His government had already cleared Rs 18,018 crore of those pending bills, he added.