Earning Rs 2,000 crore; spending Rs 9,000 crore: That's your plan, BBMP?
For a city that has not seen pot-hole free roads and garbage-free localities, the BBMP presented a Rs 8,994.41-crore budget for 2016-17. What remained unsaid in the budget speech was that the richest local body in the state has to depend on the state government for nearly 60 per cent, or Rs 5,000 crore, for its expenditure. Ironically, Bengaluru generates nearly 60 per cent of the state’s revenues, but the money ploughed back for its upkeep is paltry. The only source of income for the BBMP, which is drowning in loans, is from property tax that amounts to around Rs 2,000 crore. Team DC explores:
The BBMP budget presented by its taxation and finance committee chairman, M. Shivaraju, has a clear Ahinda slant with its emphasis on the urban poor, not very surprising from a man who is a Kuruba like the Chief Minister. It also gives thrust to e-governance and priority to wards represented by women corporators.
The budget, which is entirely dependent on the grants promised by the state government , has also focused on revenue mobilization with the BBMP setting a target of Rs 3,100 crore from property tax. The revision of property tax and tax zones is expected to earn it Rs 600 crore, according to Mr Shivaraju. For the first time , it has been planned to synchronise the BBMP’s e-swattu (property) software with that of the stamps and registration department to provide online khata certificates and cut out the touts.
In another significant decision it has been decided to put a stop to posters defacing walls around the city, by allocating at least 10 hoardings in each assembly constituency for film posters and advertisements. The civic agency hopes to earn Rs 145 crore from hoardings this way. Interestingly, hoarding identification numbers will be issued on the lines of Property Identification numbers (PID). The civic agency also plans to spend Rs 5,000 crore over two years on projects like white topping of 300 kms of road, developing more roads under TenderSure, giving the Russel , Johnson and KR markets a facelift, building a steel bridge from the Minerva Circle to Town Hall and a flyover from
ITC to the Banasawadi outer ring road. Also, prominent bus stands and commercial hubs will get Wifi and vigilance squads will be formed to remove all unauthorized OFC cables. In all, the budget for 2016-17 has an outlay of Rs 8,994.41 crore.
Mayor hails it as a ‘realistic’ budget
Commending taxation and Finance Commission Chairman, M. Shivaraju for presenting a “realistic” budget with emphasis on welfare schemes, Mayor B.N. Manjunath Reddy noted that mid-day meals had been extended to 20,000 pourakarmikas and BBMP college students and housing had received a thrust in the city with Rs 237 crore earmarked for construction of 30 houses in every ward at a cost of Rs.4 lakh under the Namma Mane scheme.
Addressing a press conference, Mr. Reddy pointed out that Rs 10.10 crore had been allocated for wards represented by women corporators. “ Each ward represented by a woman will get Rs 10 lakh to take up women welfare schemes, excluding civil work. As much as Rs 3 crore has been set aside for construction of old age homes on a PPP basis under the Sandhya Kuteera scheme and night shelters will be started in all eight zones for the distressed and destitute,” he added.
The Mayor said payments would now be made only through RTGS and more property tax collected online to ensure transparency. Effort would also be made to recover mortgaged properties, clear pending bills and repay loans, he assured.
Replying to a query, Mr. Reddy blamed officials for delay in release of government grants to the BBMP. “If officials prepared detailed project reports faster and floated tenders promptly government funds too would come in quicker,” he maintained.
Opposition protests property tax hike
Minutes before Mr Shivaraju presented the budget, high drama prevailed in the BBMP Council when BJP corporators erupted in protests against the hike in property tax. The BJP corporators wore black bands around their neck in a mark of protest against the hike. They said that the common man was burdened with the steep hike and the ruling party must rollback the revised tariff. After the intervention of Mayor Manjunath Reddy, the corporators ended their protest. Meanwhile, in a first, the BBMP had also made arrangements for citizens to view the BBMP budget presentation on big screen in its hall.
‘Shoddy progress since last budget’
The Action Taken Report (ATR) on the BBMP’s last budget is a dead giveaway of the shoddy progress made on projects announced. Lakes took centrestage in the last budget with the state government granting Rs. 40 crore for rejuvenating and maintaining them. The BBMP too identified 37 works to be done on 82 lakes in its jurisdiction, but the ATR makes no mention about the works commissioned or completed. Horticulture had received Rs 76.75 crore for developing and maintaining parks across the city, but the department has spent only Rs 27.09 crore on parks.
