BJP govt's rule in Karnataka: The proof is in the everyday nightmare

There are report cards where one has to leaf through all the pages to know the final marks. And there are those where the marks are available in its full glory on the first page. In the case of Bangalore’s infrastructure, citizens come face to face with it on a daily basis. And it’s not been a particularly pretty sight over the last three years.

First the disappointments need to be addressed. This was a government that in its manifesto promised much for Bangalore’s city development and governance reforms — gleaming new infrastructure, timely project completions and more powers to city government, among others.

And ABIDe was announced with much fanfare as the panacea for all our city ills. Three years later, we have an ABIDe-recommended urban governance legislation that is gathering dust in the corridors of power.

One expects the government to articulate a vision, lay out a road map and provide the enabling legislation for change to happen. In the case of the regional urban governance bill, the promises have not seen the light of day. And that is tragic because sans the legislative bill, our journey to a more empowered city government is stalled.

Infrastructure projects have been delayed in execution, be it the Metro Rail, the signal-free intersections on the Outer Ring Road, storm water drain (SWD) re-modeling or solid waste management. The frequent power outages  and the continuing traffic snarls in Bangalore tell a dismal story. The common citizen does not know the status of the announced peripheral ring road project or the multiple mega townships.

There have been successes too. The Big 10 buses and the air-conditioned buses in the city (and to the airport) have been successful innovations.  The introduction of Metro feeder buses ahead of the launch of Metro Reach I is a welcome sign of improving mobility options through public transport. If our traffic woes are to be addressed, higher appropriate investment in public transport and more optimum route planning will be necessary. While on the subject, dropping the white elephant in the form of a high speed rail link to the airport is welcome too.

In response to repeated flooding during the monsoons, SWD improvements are under way albeit at a slow pace. Finding landfills and ensuring that all the waste reaches the landfills continues to be a challenge. The power situation is too dependent on the vagaries of the monsoon and we need more long-term power purchase agreements.

The government could have stayed away from promoting Akrama Sakrama. The TDR scheme too could do with more thinking through the planning and implementation details. Such measures will be successful only where law enforcement is in vogue. Road widening as the cure for our traffic woes is extremely short-sighted and counterproductive, not to mention the green cover that is getting lost. 

Finally, if Bangalore is to improve and be more liveable in the long term, it is necessary to promote multiple regional areas as the new city clusters in a hub and spoke model across the state.  Any efforts at marginal improvements to the city will fail since in the absence of a regional development plan, more people will flock to Bangalore causing infrastructure stress. This needs political vision and planning for the long term. Are we up to it?