The Bengaluru Navanirmana Party (BNP) Wednesday said that although the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) spent Rs 111 crore on the maintenance and improvement of roads and drains in the HSR layout between 2016 and 2021, there has been no tangible output on ground. The party also launched a campaign, #LekkaBeku, to create awareness among the citizens of Bengaluru about the hundreds of crores of taxpayers’ money spent by the BBMP in each ward “without any transparency, citizen participation, or accountability”. “As part of the #LekkaBeku campaign, BNP has noticed another set of poorly executed works by the BBMP. The citizen portal shows that more than Rs 111 crore (Rs 111.54 crore, to be precise) was spent on improvements, maintenance, remodelling and other works related to roads and drains between 2016 and 2021 in the HSR layout, ward no. 174. The BBMP had approved a total of 103 projects, predominantly related to the drains, amounting to Rs 126 crore for the ward, and of these, 70 projects amounting to Rs 97 crore were executed and 12 worth Rs 4.2 crore are under execution,” the party said in a statement. Area sabha member of BNP in the HSR Layout Lalithamba said, “A 2021 audit report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) shows that the SWD department does not maintain records like work registers or the progress reports of works. It also does not ask contractors to submit the final drawings of the works done, which are essential before making payments. Many works are passed off as ‘emergency works’ without calling for tenders. The department has on some occasions also paid twice for the same work.” Kamesh Rastogi, BNP member from HSR layout, said, “BBMP’s SWD department is responsible for maintaining the drains and preventing floods. However, it does not even have a complete map or a database of its stormwater drain network. The lack of data on drains and their capacity means the city’s drainage network can’t be properly assessed or improved. Clearly, stormwater drains in Bengaluru are not designed as per the national guidelines. BBMP has to come up with the correct data and a plan before executing such projects.” Another BNP member in the HSR Layout, Madhu Sudan Hosapalya, added, “The state still does not have a policy that addresses storm water management or looks at storm water as a resource. The state government has repeatedly and reportedly taken short and long-term steps to approve drain-related works during summer months to avoid a repeat of the floods each time it rains in Bengaluru. But residents are left with the same old complaints,” Hosapalya said.
