Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar keeping BDA, BMRDA to drive PRR and Bidadi Township raises questions
Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who earlier held charge of the Bengaluru Development portfolio, has retained charge of Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and Bangalore Metropolitan Region
Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who earlier held charge of the Bengaluru Development portfolio, has retained charge of Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and Bangalore Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA). This move, despite him allotting the portfolio to Krishna Byre Gowda, has turned contentious. Sources said that the Chief Minister is keen on continuing to drive key projects on the Peripheral Ring Road (PRR), now renamed Bengaluru Business Corridor, anchored by the BDA, and Bidadi Township, anchored by the BMRDA, which Mr. Shivakumar has been spearheading since he took charge in 2023.
However, the other key project he has been championing — tunnel roads — anchored by Bengaluru Smart Infrastructure Limited (B-SMILE), has been allotted to Mr. Byre Gowda. Byre Gowda has not been allotted charge of local bodies in Bengaluru Urban district as well, which Mr. Shivakumar held charge of as Bengaluru Development Minister. The exclusion of key agencies like BDA and BMRDA, which are also planning authorities and working on key infrastructure projects, has raised questions on whether this will again lead to different agencies of Bengaluru working in silos.
Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA), chaired by the Chief Minister, for the first time brought all parastatals in the city onto one platform. Experts expressed that such a system of authority over key agencies of Bengaluru being divided between two leaders may come in the way of coordination as well as planned development. This is said to be the first time that the Bengaluru Development Minister has not gotten authority over all the agencies in the city.
The experts also argued that the idea of creating a separate ministerial portfolio for Bengaluru Development is to provide a focused approach to the development issues of Bengaluru. But not possessing complete authority over all the agencies has raised many eyebrows among experts.
The BriefWire