Drawing flak over his govt’s failure to prevent recurring rain-related disasters in Bengaluru, chief minister Siddaramaiah announced on Saturday that a stringent new law will soon be put in place to curb illegal constructions in the city.
After a virtual meeting with district deputy commissioners and zilla panchayat CEOs to assess the damage caused by rain, Siddaramaiah said Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA), and Bengaluru Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA) will be empowered to crack down on illegal constructions.The CM’s announcement follows the collapse of an under-construction building in Babusapalya here last week, in which nine people were killed.
Acknowledging the sorry state of Bengaluru’s roads, Siddaramaiah said a proposal to develop major city roads at a cost of Rs 669 crore has been prepared.
He also instructed officers to remain vigilant about weather forecasts, predicting heavy rainfall in the state until Dec.
Referring to the ongoing issue of flooding, he said, “I had ordered the clearing of encroachments on SWDs during my first tenure. Also, retaining walls along 173 km of SWDs need to be constructed, and around 80 km of SWDs need to be fortified.”
He added that the World Bank had pledged Rs 2,000 crore to help. “We will begin the works in the next 3-4 months,” he said.
The state govt has also approved a Rs 275-crore action plan to widen smaller bridges along SWDs and improve the condition of the lakes.
World Bank aid
World Bank has committed an additional Rs 5,000 crore aid for Karnataka, with Rs 3,500 crore earmarked for Bengaluru. Under the National Disaster Management Fund (NDMF), tenders have been floated for lake development (Rs 175 crore), tube drains (Rs 85 crore), and road construction (Rs 165 crore).
