Activists demand implementation of 74th amendment

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Battling for the corporators to get into action to save the city from the mess it has become, activists are demanding that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah amend the 74th Constitutional Amendment (CA) to bring the city back to life. Sandeep Anirudhan, convenor of Citizens’ Agenda for Bengaluru, told News Trail that the city is reeling under unplanned and non-governed activities, making it a big mess.

“Bengaluru is one of the most talked-about cities in the world and it is also the city with no Metropolitan Planning Committee (MPC) to plan the infrastructure projects that outrun the city’s vision,” he said. The activist also requested the CM to scrap the position of Bengaluru Minister, claiming it will curse the city as he or she encourages lawlessness and corruption.

“The city deserves an elected, decentralised city government headed by a mayor and a planning authority. Implement the 74th Amendment. The city doesn’t have a master plan due to the absence of the amendment”, he added. The city has been deprived of the act for the last 30 years, paving the way for unplanned growth and poor governance.

As a result, the BBMP has not been decentralized and devolved, besides the services are not unified under it. There were incidents where the MLAs used power to suppress the elected mayors in taking decisions on several aspects. As per the 74th CA, decentralized ward committees should be farmed within one month of the formation of the MPC. MPC allows elected representatives from the local bodies to decide on the plans for the city. But, for that, the state must implement the amendment.

Further, the activist also alleged and asked, what is the punishment for the state government that violates the law by not amending the act? “Having a Bengaluru minister creates vested interests, especially if the minister is from the real estate mafia or has vested interests in construction contracts such as flyovers or steel bridges, underpasses, etc. They will not allow decentralisation or devolution or the city governance reforms”, he said.