BENGALURU: The Greater Bengaluru Governance Act came into effect on Thursday, said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Interacting with reporters at Vidhana Soudha, he said the government will form Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) instead of BBMP.
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly and Padmanabha Nagar MLA R Ashoka said that if BJP returns to power, it will legally challenge the GBA.
The CM said, “From now on, Bengaluru will become Greater Bengaluru. At least three corporations are likely to be formed in the Greater Bengaluru area. The chief minister will be the authority’s chairperson. An appropriate decision will be taken in this regard in the coming days.”
Referring to heavy rain lashing the city in the past few days, he said steps have been taken to prevent flooding and tackle any rain-related incidents.
Slamming the Congress government for formation of GBA, Ashoka accused it of turning Bengaluru from greater to ‘Quarter’ Bengaluru. “While Nadaprabhu Kempegowda built one Bengaluru, the Congress government is dividing it into three, hindering the city’s development,” he said.
Splitting Bengaluru will not help generate additional revenue. Only areas that have IT and BT hubs may help generate more revenue. “If three corporations are created, there is no guarantee that Kannadigas will become mayors,” he said.
Since chief ministers are not elected from civic corporations, how can Siddaramaiah be made GBA chairman? Ashoka said.
He said BJP opposes this. If BJP comes to power, it will work towards unifying Bengaluru and fight against the Greater Bengaluru plan legally. He alleged that Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar was behind the plan for personal gains. This plan was made to postpone BBMP elections, he said.
The city’s garbage issue has not been solved and clearance for the Mekedatu project is yet to be obtained.
The city’s administration is collapsing. Instead of admitting these failures, the Congress government has formed GBA, Ashoka said.